A Lost Cause
by Kalsypher
Summary: Upon her return from Europe, Kaminari found her life had changed quite a bit. With no friends to return to, she has only her sister and her old job at MgRonalds which only upsets her sister more because of Maou. As Kaminari gets closer to Maou, she gets closer to his roommates who don't mind having the dramaless girl around. They almost prefer her.
1. Chapter 1

Winter's chill still held onto the air like a child trying to be pulled from his mother. The long weeks of overcast skies were starting to weigh on the entire city. The sun and warmth felt like a distant memory. Kaminari seemed to be one of the few that didn't mind the seemingly dismal time. Though wrapped in a dark plaid scarf and bundled in a thick grey coat and doubling her layers of pants, she still felt the terrible sting of icy winds on her nose and cheeks. Her ears were covered by her silvery hair which had been set in place due to the dark purple knitted hat on her head.

Moonbeam blue eyes gazed behind thick black rimmed glasses at the massive city in front of her. Things had changed since she had last been to the top of the tall hospital where her sister was currently having surgery on her tonsils. The bone chilling breeze caused her to shake, but the warmth of her clothing seemed to keep her in one place. After a year in Europe in a study abroad class she had managed to pay for, she would be returning to school in the fall.

She didn't miss school, though she had attended it in various countries that felt like another world. Everything seemed so simple over there. The drama on the trip seemed much worse than it did at school, but she was able to escape from it by exploring entire cities filled with strangers that didn't know her or care about her. In Europe, she had been free.

Her phone vibrated. With a sigh, she pulled it from her pocket and put it to her ear, "Kaminari speaking."

"Chiho is out of surgery now," her mother said. "Go to MgRonalds and tell Maou, would you?"

With that, Kaminari closed the phone, sticking it back in her pocket. People had been treating her differently since her return. Only when someone asked did she speak about her time in Europe, so she was almost certain she didn't sound obnoxious. She had called and sent gifts on everyone's birthday, though she was pretty sure they arrived a day late because she never got the full grasp of time zones. A day late was better than nothing at all. She remembered to call on Christmas and sent gifts then, as well. And yet, still something had changed.

She left the hospital, choosing to walk to the MgRonalds nearly ten blocks away rather than a taxi or the car. As she passed the various streets, crowds would get thicker or be nonexistent. The area where MgRonalds was seemed to have a perfect balance of people.

The doors slid open as she stepped in the restaurant. Heat swallowed her as well as the smell of greasy burgers and fries. The face of one of the first people she met upon her return greeted her with a warm, charming smile. "Welcome to MgRonalds!"

"Hey, Maou," Kaminari greeted as she approached the register. "Chi's out of surgery."

"That's a relief," Maou replied with a smile. "So, can I get you anything, or are you heading back to the hospital?"

"Oh, yeah, can I get a number one with pepper fries?" She asked as she smiled, the dedicated employee's red eyes lighting up. "Oh, go ahead and upgrade it too."

"No mayo, right?" He asked as he typed in the order.

"Right," she replied with an embarrassed smile. "Thanks for remembering."

"Here at MgRonalds, we do the best we can to please our customers," he replied with a wide smile.

"Is it okay if I wait until you get off?"

"Huh? Yeah, that's fine," he replied with a smile.

Though she didn't know Maou, he seemed to be the only one that hadn't changed. She had been back for nearly two months and he was the only one that was still just as happy to see had been when they first met. The formalities had faded, but nothing else had changed. Everyone else had, though and she didn't know why.

She sat in the corner, contemplating what had happened. Before she knew it, Maou had placed a tray in front of her and had sat down on the other side of the booth, a tray of his own with a burger and fries. He must have clocked out since he was wearing a black t-shirt and jeans.

"Don't you want to visit Chi?" She asked him.

"Well, yeah, but you ordered food, and I'm hungry, so I figured we could just stay and eat before we headed to the hospital." He replied as he ate a few fries.

Kaminari had found Maou easy to talk to, but now that she was eating with him, she felt uncomfortable, almost awkward like she was sitting with a stranger.

"Hey, you okay?" Maou asked her as she sipped her soda.

"No, not really," she replied honestly as she picked up some fries and dipped them in ketchup.

"...do you want to talk about it?" He asked awkwardly.

"Do you want to know about it?" She countered while looking at him.

"I mean, I guess," he replied, starting to warm up to the bizarre situation. "It can't be that bad, right?"

"I don't know how bad it is," Kaminari replied. "Everyone is acting weird around me, almost like they're ashamed of me or they don't want me there."

Maou stared at her for a moment, his red eyes curiously confused over her statement. "You don't know?"

She shook her head as she crumpled up the paper from her burger, "Do you?"

He scratched his cheek for a moment, looking away from her, "I think I might have an idea, but you would need to talk to Chi about it."

She nodded as she got up and threw her trash away, placing the tray on top of the trash area. Maou shrugged on his jacket as they stepped into the cold evening air. The two walked in silence through the sometimes busy, sometimes empty areas both comfortable with the silence.

When the two walked into a Chiho's hospital room, her parents and a girl she had yet to meet glared at her, while Chiho just stared with this terrible pain in her eyes as she blushed and paled at the same time. The girl's jade gaze left Kaminari as she stood up, her long red hair flowing behind her as she stormed by, taking Maou with her.

Kaminari moved across the room, folding her arms across her chest and leaning against the boring tan wall.

"What took you so long?" Her mother asked.

"I waited for Maou to get off so we could walk back together," Kaminari replied trying to hold back the annoyance that would have otherwise shown.

Her mother stood up and walked out of the room, grabbing Kaminari by the arm and taking her out to the waiting room where there fortunately were no people, otherwise they would have been on the roof.

"Do you ever think of anyone other than yourself?" Her mother asked angrily. "Chiho has had a crush on that boy almost a year now, and here you are trying to take him away from her!"

"I'm sorry, what?" Kaminari questioned, some of her anger starting to show. "That's why all of you have been treating me like I'm some sort of disappointment? I consider him an acquaintance at this point, but yes, I think we will be friends one day. Now, you better get your facts straight because I am not interested in him at all. I know it might be hard for you to believe a teenage girl doesn't have a crush on someone, but it's true. Now, you can go in there and tell your daughter to get over herself because if I do it, Dad will have to arrest me, and I would like to avoid that."

She stormed out of the room slamming into the girl that had taken Maou out of the room. "Hey, I need to talk to you!" The red head said as she grabbed Kaminari by the arm.

Kaminari slapped the girl's hand away, frustrated with the whole situation, "If you want to talk some bull crap about Maou and me being a thing, you had best step away from me because I will put you in this hospital."

Immediately the girl released her allowing Kaminari to go to the elevator. When the elevator opened, Maou stepped out as he hung up the phone. "Hey, Ashiya is coming to pick you up to make sure you get home safely."

"Tell him to not bother. I might not even go home," she replied as the doors closed. She slammed her finger onto the G button to take her to the bottom floor that would allow her to go to the outside world.

When her phone vibrated, she pulled it out and hung up on the caller then turned her phone off. As she left the hospital, she headed toward her home, but had no intention of returning there. In all actuality, it would have been best to wait for Ashiya to take her home. In her anger, she had walked until she didn't know where she was anymore.

She sighed and shivered in the cold night breeze, her eyes going back to the bright city lights. That was where she needed to go.

"Excuse me, but are you lost?" A careful voice asked.

She looked up at the pale haired man who stared down at her with some concern in his golden eyes. "Little bit," she replied with a smile. "It's crazy how you can get so angry over something then end up lost somewhere just because you weren't paying attention."

"Well, come with me," he said with a sigh. "The girl I was supposed to escort disappeared."

"Oh, are you Ashiya?" She asked as they walked away from the city lights.

"Why, yes," he replied with a curious look on his face. "Have we met?"

"No, but I'm Kaminari Sasaki, Chiho's sister," she introduced with a faint smile. "Although, it seems I can't carry that name with pride anymore."

"Yes, Maou did give me a brief insight of the situation," Ashiya replied with a sigh. "I fear ever since Chiho and Maou met, she's become quite jealous over even the smallest things. On the bright side, I rarely have to cook anymore due to Suzuno who lives next door. Between her cooking and Chiho's jealousy, we're saving quite a bit on money as far as food is concerned."

Kaminari rolled her eyes, "Well, hate to tell you, but I'm not a cooking person. Although, I do owe you for taking care of me tonight, so maybe I'll make you some cookies or something."

Though Ashiya declined the offer, Kaminari noticed a visible change in his step. Were they so focused in making meals, they had forgotten to give the guys desserts as well? She didn't voice the question while she followed him up some slick, metal stairs to a door that had his name, Maou's name, and some one named Hanzo Urushihara.

"That's a lot of people," Kaminari noted as she stepped in, easily slipping her shoes off as she closed the door behind her.

"Since it's so late, you can stay the night," Ashiya said. "I believe it would be best for you to head back to the city during her day."

"Who are you talking to?" The guy at the computer asked as Kaminari started taking off layers until she was in a long sleeved brown shirt and jeans.

"This is Chiho's sister, Kaminari," Ashiya said with a glare. "Show some manners and greet her properly."

"I'm Urushihara," he greeted without looking at her. He suddenly turned to her, his purple gaze wide with excitement. "You're the one Chiho got so upset over?"

"Now isn't the time," Ashiya scolded.

Kaminari sighed slightly as she sat down at the table and just stared at it. "Yes, I suppose I am."

The purple haired boy moved to the table, sitting with her as he watched the strange sadness take over the girl's spirit. Though some of his hair covered his face, his left eye still held enough intensity to not need to see the other one. Some of his hair was longer, resting just at the base of his neck, some pushed behind his left ear showing the double piercings.

"So, what did you do? And why hasn't Chiho talked about you before?" He asked.

"I've been out of town for a while. I'm not really sure what I've done. They can't honestly think Maou would be interested in dating someone. He's too goal oriented for that."

"Oh, I see," Urushihara said as he rested his elbow on the table, a smirk on his lips while he looked at the girl. "She's mad because you don't have a crush on him. You haven't even shown any sort of interest in him."

Ashiya handed Kaminari some tea and sat down, "That's absurd!"

"Unfortunately, it can actually happen," Kaminari told him. "That might be what's wrong." She sighed as she rubbed her face. "Hey, Ashiya, can I have a crush on you?"

The pale haired man paled then blushed, "I am afraid that will cause too much tension in the house. What about Urushihara?"

Kaminari looked at the boy for a moment, "You are sort of cute. Can I have a crush on you?"

The purple haired boy just stared at her for a moment. "And just how do you act when you have a crush? I don't see you being like Chiho."

"I will avoid you like a plague," she said with a smile. "I won't look at you, talk to you, and I will do everything I can to subtly not be near you."

He shrugged, "Works for me. You know she's going to freak out, right? She hates me." He smirked, "Can we keep this a secret from Maou?"

"We'll have to," Kaminari said as she looked at Ashiya. "Unless Maou won't blow it."

"He's pretty good at keeping secrets," Urushihara commented as he looked up at Ashiya. "We all are."

Kaminari smiled some as she looked at Urushihara, "Good at keeping secrets, huh? Guess I'll have to see what I can find about you, then."

Urushihara chuckled, "Good luck."

The trio stayed up for a while until Ashiya finally went to bed, leaving Urushihara and Kaminari awake to keep talking about everything she had missed while in Europe, and she told him about her adventures in Europe. Only after Ashiya had demanded they go to bed did the two stop their conversations and go to bed.

Kaminari groaned as she sat up but fell back down when her head slammed into a table.

"I tried to tell you." Sliding away from the table, she sat up again, glaring at Urushihara who was on his computer. Ashiya was cooking breakfast and making tea.

"Maou called this morning," Ashiya told Kaminari as she scratched her head and ran her fingers through trying to get rid of the knots. "Chiho wants to see you. He didn't give me any details."

"Because she knew I wouldn't come," Kaminari sighed. "Well, I guess I'm off then."

"At least stay for breakfast," Ashiya said as he looked at her.

"Yeah, stay for breakfast," Urushihara agreed. "I like having a normal person around."

"Yes, the change is welcoming compared to the screaming and arguing the others bring when they come over," Ashiya agreed as he brought some bowls to the table.

The three ate with a steady conversation, mainly Ashiya asking about various places in Europe he had read about that were seemingly haunted. She told explained various castles that she got to visit and the rumors there, but she made sure they understood the Dracula's Castle.

"Vampires aren't real," Urushihara said as he put down his empty bowl.

"No, but Vlad the Impaler was," Kaminari said in an almost mysterious voice, wicked, but charming at the same time. She started the history lesson with the meaning of Dracula, son of the dragon, and how he earned that title. Her excitement in the subject of the man's bloodthirsty way of living, and the torture methods he used bothered Ashiya, but Urushihara seemed just as fascinated. She continued on naming more psychos that lived throughout history killing and bathing in blood, though she didn't really get to visit some of those places. She spoke highly of the Vatican almost with the same passion as she spoke of Dracula.

By the time Ashiya had started washing dishes, Kaminari decided it was time to go. It was ten in the morning and Maou had to have called around seven, and she still needed to go home and shower. With a brief goodbye, she left the apartment just to find the red haired girl waiting at the bottom of the stairs, a glare in her green gaze once again.

"Why are you here?" She asked dangerously.

"Unless you live here, it doesn't matter what I do," Kaminari replied in a tone just as deadly. She walked down the stairs and moved past the girl, starting her way back to the city so she could go home and get dressed.

It must have taken an hour for her to walk all the way back home, but by the time she got there, she almost didn't go back to the hospital. She had stayed up way too late talking to Urushihara, and it was starting to show. After a much needed shower to wash off the winter chill, she got dressed in multiple layers again, putting the grey coat on once again with the plaid scarf around her neck.

Upon her return to the hospital, she found her sister asleep while her parents were missing, but Maou was still in the room, reading a book. "Oh, good morning, Maou," Kaminari greeted.

He smiled when he looked up, "Good morning, Kaminari. Ashiya said you stayed there?"

"Yes, he's a wonderful host." She smiled.

"Yeah," he sighed. "Look, I'm sorry about last night."

"Yeah, me too," she replied with a frown as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Urushihara was pleasant as well."

"That's what Ashiya said. It's hard for me to believe he would stay up so late to have a conversation with someone. He also told me about your plan. Do you really think it will work?"

"I can hope," she replied as she frowned.

"They made it sound like it's happened before," Maou commented as he returned to his book.

She scoffed quietly as she crossed her arms over her chest. "The only thing I've taken from Chiho is proof I'm willing to get what I want. I heard about the study abroad program, and I worked three to four jobs for three years to save up for it because my parents said I would have to pay my way. So, I paid my way. When Chi asked if she could go with me, I told her no. If she wanted to go to Europe, she would have worked like I did, but she didn't want it as bad as I did." A ghost of a smirk formed on her lips when she noticed the change in Chiho's heart rate. Maou noticed it too as he changed the way he was sitting. "But, you know, I think there's a chance with Urushihara."

Maou smiled some, "Well, he's a good guy. I don't know how he is about relationships though."

Chiho slowly opened her eyes and moved to sit up, which Maou helped her with just as her parents walked in. When her parents noticed the smile on Chiho's face, they smiled at their eldest daughter as though nothing had happened.

"Well, I'm glad you're alive, Chi," Kaminari said with a smile. "I'm going to find a job."

"Will you get Chiho's room ready?" Her dad asked. "I'll see if dispatch will hire you on."

"I'm on it," Kaminari replied with a wide smile as she left the room. When she got in the elevator, she pushed the G button. Before the door closed, Maou jumped in with a smile. "She's much happier now. But, you know she hates Urushihara, right?"

"I asked Ashiya first, but admittedly, Urushihara is cuter, so," she shrugged. "Besides, Ashiya is probably too old for that to be believable."

"So, how do you act when you have a crush?" Maou asked.

"I actively avoid them as best I can, so expect a lot of forced visits on my part and Chiho trying to make me sit by him. Unfortunately, it's going to be kind of hard to act like that around him since he's interesting. It was nice to hear someone not talk about you."

Maou sighed, "Man...I'm sorry it's been like that. I've never been in this situation, so I don't really know what to do."

"When I left, I lost all my friends. All I've had is Chiho, and all she talks about is you, so it's nice to have other people to talk to. I appreciate your existence, Maou."

He smiled, "Thanks. Actually, I'm going home to get ready for work, and I'm sure Ms. Kisaki would like to see you again."

"I don't think she'll hire me back since you took my place, but she might want me to give you a few helpful tips on how to be the best."

The two chatted over her time as a shift manager at MgRonalds and how she moved between branches all the time. The MgRonalds by the amusement park couldn't hold down a shift manager, so she was constantly sent to take over until they found one.

"I'm back," Maou announced as he walked into his apartment. "Kami's with me."

"Hello, Kaminari," Ashiya greeted while Urushihara gave an uninterested wave.

"What did Chiho say about your secret love for me?" He asked, his focus still on the computer.

"She got her tonsils removed. She can't talk," she replied as she took a seat at the table where she had been the night before.

"Hey, don't fall asleep. You might wake up under the table again," Urushihara told her as Ashiya handed her some tea.

"I'm starting to think you put the table on me," Kaminari replied while eyeing him suspiciously.

"I think Chi feels better now that she thinks Kami has a crush on you," Maou said as he stepped out of the bathroom. He was rubbing his head with the towel, trying to dry his hair before going out in the cold again.

"You need a hair dryer," Kaminari told him as she raised an eyebrow at the shirtless man. "Can you put on a shirt?"

"No, actually, I can't," he replied. "If the shirt gets wet, I will get cold and die."

She laughed at his ridiculous explanation, "I'll tell Chi to buy you a hair dryer."

"We've tried that," Urushihara said. "It wasn't pretty."

"Did you blow dry it, or did you let someone else?" She asked.

"We did each other so we wouldn't have to deal with Emi, Suzuno, or Chi," Maou replied. "Urushihara is right, though. Hair dryers are a no go."

"Well, whenever you get tired of walking around freezing while waiting for your hair to dry, just let me know and I'll blow dry your hair."

Maou sighed, "Fine, you can blow dry my hair. No one else can know."

"Not a word," Kaminari agreed as she got up. Once they found the hair dryer, Kaminari went to work at Maou's hair, carefully blow drying it to where it kept its natural straightness without any sort of fluffy sheen to it. The process only took five minutes, and wouldn't have taken that long if she hadn't been so careful, but to a woman's eye, if she hadn't been careful, the use of a hair dryer would have been obvious. "There, all better."

Maou smiled as he slipped a shirt on then put a long sleeved shirt on over it. "You'll have to teach me that. It definitely will help in the winter."

"Yeah, whatever," Kaminari replied as she started packing her layers on again. "Thanks for the tea, Ashiya."

The two left to head to MgRonalds. Maou grabbed his bike so he would be able to use it on his journey home when he got off work. The walk was quiet, something they didn't mind.

"Do you think Chi would mind if you worked there again?" Maou suddenly asked.

"I would be an employee on her level," she replied as she shoved her hands into her coat pockets to get them warm. "I can't be shift manager again until I graduate, so it would just be a part time thing. Ms. Kisaki would probably send me to the MgRonalds by the amusement park. But, it's nothing I can't handle with school work."

"I don't know how you did it, working all those jobs plus school to pay your way through the study abroad," he sighed. "But, it sounds like an interesting country. I might have to go there one day."

She smiled, "It's definitely worth it. All the places, all the history. It's almost like reliving the past in some places. Some of them were terrifying to be around, while others...some had this way of crushing your spirit, destroying all hope and happiness in your soul."

"Really?"

She repeated the story of Dracula to him as they stood at a red light, waiting for the green to allow them to walk. Just like Urushihara, he held onto every word she said. By the time she was done, they had reached MgRonalds. The two stepped in after he locked his bike to a post.

"Kami, you're back!" The black haired manager of MgRonalds greeted.

"Yeah, I've been back for about two months now," she replied with a smile. "Just looking for work again."

The woman huffed with a smile as she put her hands on her hips, "You're going to regret working your way through high school. Your uniform is still in your old locker. You won't be shift manager, because Maou has that position now, but I'm sure you can help him get better since he's still new to the position."

"Of course, Ms. Kisaki," Kaminari replied with a smile. "When do you want me to start?"

"Now," Kisaki replied. "The lunch rush is about to come through and we'e short two employees. I want you on the register."

"I-is that a good idea?" Maou asked.

Kisaki chuckled, "You'll see."

Kaminari and Maou stood in the break room, both looking her over. It was all too big. "Well, I'll have to order more," Kaminari said as she tightened the belt around her waist, creating a new hole in the leather so her pants wouldn't fall.

Maou was blown away by Kaminari's customer service and speed. She had far surpassed him the moment she put the uniform on. He almost felt unworthy of working next to her on the register while she went through three customers just as he finished one. Her ability to look customers in the eye as they brought up certain complaints or questions seemed to destroy any chance of needing Kisaki from interfering.

"You're rusty," Kisaki said as the lunch rush ended. Her attention turned to Maou who wiped some sweat from his forehead. "That is why she was shift manager."

"Yeah, no doubt," Maou agreed while Kaminari wiped down the counter before heading to the dining area to clean tables. She was silent as she cleaned the tables, asking typical questions to the few customers around the areas she cleaned.

Once she was back in the kitchen, she remained quiet while cleaning some dishes that had been put to the side. "You're on a whole different level," Maou commented as he stood next to her. "I really didn't expect you to be that good."

"The key is eye contact," Kaminari told him. "You can't be afraid of the customer's, but you can't show that you think you're better than them. Treat every customer like you would treat Ms. Kisaki and everything just falls into place."

"I see," Maou said thoughtfully. "And what else do you recommend?"

"You should put the guy doing the burgers on the fries and the guy out there wiping down tables on burgers."

"But Kenji is always on burgers," Maou replied. "Miko can't be put on burgers. He's too easily distracted."

Kaminari just shrugged, "Whatever you say, boss."

"Who would be on fries?"

"Me," she replied with a smile. "It's only fair as a beginner employee to be on the fries."

"You're not a beginner, though. You're just returning after a long vacation."

"Where do you want me?" She asked as she put away a now clean spatula.

Despite his better instincts of not listening to her, he complied with her unusual way of doing business. While he manned the register alone, Kaminari cooked the fries while the other two employees were put to their places. As the night moved on, Maou realized how smoothly everything was going. Customers were being well taken care of, and even when he did call Kaminari to the register for help, there were still fries ready to give to the customers. She had never worked with the two, but already knew where to put them and how to get them to work together.

As Maou began closing, he watched as Kaminari began washing the grill while Miko headed to the front to clean. He was about to ask, but he realized she could reach the hard to reach spots with her smaller hands while Miko could wash the tables faster since his arms were longer.

"You have to teach me everything you know," Maou said as the two left the dark MgRonalds.

"What?"

"I can't become the head of MgRonalds without that sort of intuition of how people can best work together."

"You want to be the head of MgRonalds? Like, Ms. Kisaki, or are you planning on climbing the cooperate ladder?"

"I'm going to become the head of MgRonalds," he replied with a triumphant smile. "At the rate I'm going, it might be in fifteen years, but it will happen!"

"Have you been to college?" Kaminari asked. When Maou gave her a confused look, she continued on, "They won't take you seriously unless you have a degree in something. Preferably business, but some places don't really care."

"But, that will take up so much of my time! And all the work I'll miss!" He whined. "I just can't catch a break."

"I'm sure Chi will help you out. Even though I've got a thing for Urushihara, she will still get jealous if I try to tutor you."

"But that was your job, too," Maou's reminded.

"I know. Chi lost one of her boyfriend's due to me tutoring him. He decided he liked me more, and left Chi. I have better things to do with my time than deal with that drama, so I dropped him as a student and found someone else. He was my student before he was Chi's boyfriend, so it didn't start out like that."

"Humans are so weird," Maou mumbled.

Kaminari chuckled, "Yeah, they are."

He stopped walking as he looked down at her, "Do you know?"

She stopped walking as well as she looked back at him, "Know what?"

"T-that...Urushihara...has a crush on you?" Maou questioned awkwardly.

"I'm pretty sure he doesn't, but that's not relevant to anything human related. What are you talking about?"

Maou stared at her for a moment, his mind clearly moving as fast as it possibly could to come up with an excuse. Just as sweat started to break out on his forehead, he sighed. "Come with me. I have some things I need to tell you."

Kaminari frowned, "I can't. I've got to take care of Chi. Maybe another time?"

Relief flushed all the stress from Maou's system as he watched the eldest Sasaki sister walk toward her home. His secret was safe for another day.

"Chi, I got you that dry erase board so I don't have to play charades. I'm not in the mood to play pictionary either. Just tell me what you want." Kaminari demanded as she glared at her sister's bizarre drawing. She had been doing research on Urushihara since he said he ad secrets, but after a basic search, nothing had come up, so she was getting ready to dig deeper.

She rolled her eyes when she saw Chiho's request, "You have a phone. Just text him and ask him. Oh, and Kisaki hired me on again." The amount of anger radiating from her sister made her roll her eyes, "Relax. I'm not taking Maou's job. I'm going to be working with you rather than over you."

When that didn't appease her sister's rage, Kaminari had to hold back all of her annoyance while sitting on her sister's bed, "Look, I'm not into Maou. His roommate is pretty cute though." She smiled at her sister's curiosity. "Urushihara was his name."

Chiho's jaw dropped and she immediately began scribbling on the white board for a solid three minutes before letting her sister see what her rant was about. Kaminari read over the words many times. She kept calling him lazy and worthless and that he never helped around the house and didn't deserve to live there.

"Then, what's keeping him from having a job?"

Chiho was suddenly panicked as she tried to think up an excuse. Kaminari smiled, "Is this one of his secrets? He said he was good at keeping secrets, and that I wouldn't be able to find anything about him."

Chiho quickly scribbled down something then showed it to her sister which earned a glare, "He doesn't have a crush on me. Now, tell me what it is."

Before the brown haired sister could write an answer, Kaminari's phone went off. She huffed as she looked at the screen then answered, "Hey, Ms. Kisaki."

"I'm going to need you at the amusement park for the rest of the month to train their new shift manager." The head manager said with a frustrated sigh.

"Okay, I'll be there tomorrow."

"You're the best."

Kaminari sighed as she closed her phone, "I'll be at the amusement park branch for the rest of the month. Well, I've got a long day tomorrow, so I'm going to bed. Mom's in charge."

The pale haired sister wandered to her room and closed the door. Twice, her sister and Maou had prevented her from knowing the truth. It was annoying, but she was going to figure out the truth, or at least some of Maou's secrets. She had to, just to prove Urushihara she could do it. Everyone had a history, she just had to find it.

First thing in the morning, Kaminari took a shower then checked on her recovering sister. With the younger still sleeping, Kaminari left their home to head to the amusement park on the edge of the city. She knew what would happen when she got to the amusement park. Though she was 17, she was still far too young to know anything about anything, much less train a manager, but that's what her job was.

"You're early," the head manager, Tai said when she arrived. "It's good to see you again, Ms. Sasaki."

"You as well, Mr. Tai," she replied with a smile.

"Chances are, Misa is going to be late," Tai told her with a sigh. "She's directionally challenged at best, so she's probably here, just lost."

"Do you want me to teach her about the park or just how to do her job?" She asked.

"Both," he replied. "When the delivery orders start coming in, help her get them done so she'll learn her way around and the people here."

The small woman that finally came was probably in her mid-twenties. She had a dedication to this job like no other with her blonde hair cut short to avoid a hairnet. The woman truly believed herself to be the shift manager that didn't need any training as she screwed up time and time again, even though Kaminari had told her what to do.

As the frustrating shift came to an end, Misa had finally started listening to Kaminari's suggestions, but the customer complaints were almost too much for even Tai to handle. With the problems building, Kaminari had to stay to help prevent more problems and to assure great service.

When night came, Kaminari was finally released. She was tired on a new level she hadn't experienced since getting used to the time change when she returned from Europe. As she approached the train station, she started feeling strange, like someone was watching her. Rather than stop to check it out, she put away her human curiosities, forcing herself into the station so she could go home.

The sensation followed her until the stop before the one she needed to take so she could get home. She was too frightened to watch the people get off the train, and the station platform was glared over by the car lights. With a shiver, she sighed, enjoying the sudden feeling of somewhat safety, or at least the comfort of not being watched anymore.

When she was finally on the busy sidewalks to head home, she noticed a familiar face in the crowd. "Hey, Ashiya," she greeted.

When he greeted her, she felt the eyes on her again making her tense up. "Is there something wrong?" He asked as he noted her discomfort.

"I think someone is following me. Can you take me home?" She asked with a wary glance around as she stepped closer to the tall man.

"Of course," he replied as he pulled out his phone. "I must tell Maou so he doesn't worry. He'll make sure to pass on the word to your sister."


	2. Chapter 2

As the two walked, Kaminari kept almost unreasonably close to the man. He didn't seem to mind her closeness, in fact occasionally pulling her closer to him when people started to crowd up. The two remained silent as they walked, but Ashiya's own terrible feeling kept him on edge making Kaminari worry more. Were they being followed?

The two simultaneously relaxed when the feeling was finally gone. With only two blocks to go, Kaminari assured the man she could make it home safe, but he insisted he stay with her.

"Thank you, Ashiya," Kaminari said with a smile. "I'm sorry for whatever inconvenience it made."

"Nonsense," he said with a wave of his hand. "I most certainly could not allow a friend to be alone after asking for my assistance. Have a good night, Kaminari."

"You're the best, Ashiya. Take care."

She headed inside as he walked away. To her surprise, her mother was standing there in shock. "Hey, Mom," she greeted with a smile.

"Who is that man? He is far too old for you!" She exclaimed, immediately going into her regular rant about age difference in couples.

As she caught her breath to start a new point in her argument, Kaminari managed to get a word in, "That's Ashiya, one of Maou's roommates."

Her mother went from rampant to looking like she was enjoying a summer breeze. Even mentioning Maou seemed to put her mother's worried heart at ease. "That's nice, dear. He's cute."

"Mom, don't start this again," Kaminari told her.

"Your sister told me all about that Urushihara you've got a crush on, and frankly, I'm surprised you would pick someone like that over Maou or Ashiya."

"Ashiya doesn't have a job either," Kaminari replied.

"Yes, but he's the one keeping the three of those boys alive on a part-timer's pay. Honestly, you can do better."

Kaminari sighed dramatically as she placed her hand over her heart, "Alas, 'tis the curse of the hormonal times of my life." She yawned, "I'm going to bed. Night, Mom."

"Put some aloe on your burn before you go to bed," her mom said as she walked away.

Even though it was cold outside, she still managed to get a sunburn in the overcast day. She almost prided herself over the inconvenient feat, but when she looked at herself in the mirror, she realized there was no sunburn, but a note on the mirror. She pulled the sticky paper from the mirror, reading over the words with a frown. It was a message from Chiho, again ranting about her crush, telling her he's not who she thinks he is.

After brushing her teeth, Kaminari went to her bedroom and got on her laptop for more information about this Urushihara. There had been no general information about him, Maou, or Ashiya, but that didn't mean there wasn't more. As she carefully hacked into the police information, she almost immediately found Maou and Ashiya. They had been arrested around the time of the shootings and muggings almost a year ago. After hours of searching through the database for Urushihara, she was about to give up when she found some interesting security tapes that had someone that favored Urushihara on the thumbnail. When she pressed the play button, her brain seemed to break.

Almost all of Shinjuku was destroyed by Urushihara, who was flying around with black wings and a girl who favored the one she met in the hospital was chasing after him, she was wearing armored boots and had a long sword. But, the debris was just floating there. As the debris was slowly lowered to the ground, she could see some people floating in the sky. Once whatever happened was over, the debris started floating and was putting itself back together, and it looked like nothing had happened at all.

She soon found a wanted list, and buried under all the nameless people was a picture of Urushihara. No wonder Chiho didn't like him. She closed her laptop and sighed. Of course her sister would get involved with a group of criminals. Though, whatever Maou and Ashiya had been arrested for was probably just a mark on their record, it was still enough to consider them almost dangerous. But, she knew better. If Ms. Kisaki thought he was dangerous, he wouldn't work at MgRonalds.

There was nothing she could do with the information at the time. She didn't have Maou's number and didn't really care enough to get in contact with him so late anyway. With a yawn, she climbed into her bed and just let her mind wander away, trying to forget the video she had watched.

In the morning, her mind was solely focused on the video. Making her way to the amusement park was almost second nature as well as teaching Misa how to do her job. She just wanted to go home and not deal with the facts on her mind. She had watched the video twice while getting ready for work and still just couldn't understand what had happened.

Once her shift ended, she stood outside the amusement park and looked back at the city. She didn't want to go home. She didn't want to talk to Urushihara and tell him that she knew what was going on. She wanted to go to Europe again, in a world where she would be entirely alone.

With that thought in mind, she made her way to the bus and sat in the second row where she could stare out the window. Sometimes the best time to be alone is in a crowd of strangers, and that's what she planned to do.

Three hours into her dazed thoughts, someone sat by her. It brought her back to reality just long enough to notice the man who gave a smile and looked away. Her eyes moved back to the world outside. Buildings passed and time seemed like a distant concept rather than something she needed.

As the bus came to a stop a few blocks from Maou's apartment, Kaminari gathered the courage to get off the bus and talk with them about what she had found. The closer she got to the apartment, the clearer an argument could be heard inside. She immediately recognized her flustered sister, but not the other female voices. Kaminari officially confirmed how irrational her sister was about Maou, who she noted had registered as being 20, while Ashiya had been registered as 25. The four year age difference didn't matter on paper, but a 16 year old and 20 year old being coworkers and dating was frowned upon, at least by her standards.

She inhaled deeply and released a shaky breath. Just as she raised her hand to push the doorbell, the door opened. She stared at Urushihara who pushed her back and closed the door behind him.

He sighed in relief now that the loud noise had been muffled by the door. He smiled, "It will be a while before they notice I'm gone."

"It's too cold to stay outside," Kaminari argued as she pulled her coat closer to her.

"Suzuno won't mind if we crash at her place for a while. C'mon."

She followed him down the hall to the other apartment and opened the door. This apartment was almost as simple as the one Maou shared with Ashiya and Urushihara, but it had a few more things, like a bed and a decent sized table for more than five people.

"So, what brings you here?" He asked as he pulled a game system from his jacket pocket.

"I know," she said in a dangerous that made him stop his game.

"You know? Know what?"

"I don't know how it happened, but you destroyed part of the city. You had black wings, and you were fighting someone with a sword. There were more people flying as well, then the city got put back together like nothing had ever happened in the first place."

"So, you did find out," he replied with a sly smile. "You are good. I guess you have tons of questions."

"Yes," she replied while looking at her hands. She sighed as she ran her fingers through her pale hair, "It's none of my business, but why would you destroy a city just to put it back together?"

"Maou put it back together," he replied while going back to his game. "So, what are your questions?"

"You're not from here, are you?" She asked.

"We're from Ente Isla," he replied. "Maou, Ashiya, Emi, and Suzuno, too."

"Who are Emi and Suzuno?" She asked. As far as she knew, she hadn't met them yet.

"Emi Yusa, or in Ente Isla known as the great Hero Emilia. Suzuno is known as Crestia Bell, some assassin for the church."

"Why does the church need an assassin?"

"To kill off demons and betrayers of all things holy."

"Demons?"

"That's what Maou and Ashiya are. In fact, when they left Ente Isla, they were in the middle of a war. Maou was trying to take over, but the church fought back. Maou is a king, you know. The great King Satan, lord of all demons. Ashiya was one of his generals. His name is Alciel."

Kaminari watched as he played his game. It was hard for her to comprehend even though she had seen it with her own eyes. "You're the only one with wings."

"I was an angel until I got bored and decided to leave Heaven."

She simply nodded and fell onto her back, staring at the ceiling. "So, what's your name?" She asked as she looked over at him.

"Lucifer."

Her eyes moved back to the ceiling as she allowed the information to sink in. The two were silent for a while, the only sound in the room coming from the neighboring apartment where people were still arguing and the clicking of the buttons on Lucifer's game. Over and over, the video played in her mind. It was slowly making sense that these people from other worlds were in their world.

Kaminari gave a sad laugh as she got up, "Alright. I'm going home."

"Wait, that's it?" He was caught off guard by how few questions she had.

"Unlike Chi, I can't just pick up where I left off when someone tells me stuff like that. She's so caught up in Maou, you could tell her he was a fish, and she wouldn't care."

"Then, why are you so upset about it?" He asked.

"Because I don't understand," she replied as her body trembled slightly. "Nothing about this makes sense. Why aren't you as strong as you were that day? Why stay here? Don't you want to go home?" She sighed as she rubbed her temples. "Never mind. I don't want to know."

She left the apartment and headed home, her mind swirling with questions to the point of a migraine. She didn't want to see any of them again, even though she knew she would.

When she returned home, she opened her laptop and pulled up the video once again. After watching it over and over, she went back to the database and moved through the files until she found Urushihara. "You're welcome," she muttered as she deleted the file.

She closed the video and shut down her laptop. She didn't need that in her life. She just couldn't handle it.

"What's wrong with Kami?" Maou asked Chiho as they watched the girl work on the burgers.

"She only said she knows. I don't know what that means."

"Oh, she knows the truth about me and the others," Maou replied. "Urushihara said she had a hard time understanding, which I understand, but I think two weeks is enough time for her to figure it out."

"She's just learning how to cope now," Chiho replied. "If Urushihara told her everything, she's just trying to cope with the fact he's hurt innocent people. She's just not as accepting as me."

"You've heard Emi's story," Maou as he looked down at her. "You know what we've done."

"But you haven't done that in this world," she replied. "You've been kind and thoughtful and sweet-"

As Chiho continued using bizarre adjectives that were coming from her hormonal mind, Maou looked back at the older sister. Over all, he had a good judgment in a character, but the truth had broken her spirit. She didn't smile or laugh anymore, except when dealing with customers. She only talked to them about work things. According to Chiho, she had started locking herself in her room, only talking when someone spoke to her. It was too late to erase her memory, so there was no way he could make her forget.

Her reaction definitely explained why she was the smarter of the two. She was like the great Hero Emilia in that aspect. While Emilia simply wouldn't forgive him, Maou was starting to think that's what Kaminari was doing, trying to find a way to accept what he had done in Ente Isla. She didn't have to accept what he did, she had to accept Urushihara and Ashiya as well.

When Maou looked at the register next to him, Chiho was gone and her sister stood, staring blankly ahead, waiting for customers to come in. "Oh, hey, Kami. I didn't even notice Chi had left."

"She's crying in the break room because you weren't listening to her," she replied, her pale eyes meeting his. "Tell me, oh mighty one, why haven't you gone home?"

"Can this conversation wait until after work?" Maou asked in a panic. "I have to check on Chi."

She watched him walk away, then turned to greet the customer that walked in. Her customer-friendly smile almost faded as Urushihara walked to the counter. "Good afternoon, sir," she greeted solemnly. "Can I recommend our pepper fries?"

He didn't acknowledge her as he looked at the menu. "Where's Maou?"

"The break room," she answered. "I'll go get him."

"Don't bother," he replied. "Let him deal with Chiho."

"Is there anything I can do for you?" She asked.

"You can tell me what's wrong," he replied as he continued looking at the menu above her head. "I didn't know there was so much to choose from."

Śhe sighed, "I can't talk about stuff like that while I'm on the clock. It would take too long. And, if you're feeling adventurous, try our burger fries."

"Burger fries?"

"Two burger patties that have been cut into strips, dipped in batter, and deep fried. We drizzle ketchup and mustard on them too, and for an extra ¥56, you can make them cheeseburger fries."

"Gross, is it actually good?"

"There are better things, but they're not terrible."

"When do you get off?"

"About thirty minutes. Why?"

"I want two number ones, however you think they should be with pepper fries," he answered.

She typed up the order and told him the price, her mind on autopilot. As she handed him the two cups, one of the other workers came up with his order. He took the tray and went to a booth in the far corner of the room then waited.

"When did Urushihara get here?" Maou asked as he returned with Chiho.

"About ten minutes ago. I think he's waiting for someone, but he didn't say who."

"It was the weirdest thing," Maou said. "He got this job interview without applying anywhere, then got the job. He's not a criminal anymore. There's nothing about him anywhere."

Kaminari smiled slightly, "So, he got the job."

"Wait, you knew?" He asked.

"It can wait until after work," she replied with a smirk as she grabbed a wet rag and left to wipe down tables.

When Kaminari finally clocked out, Urushihara was still sitting there, waiting. "Who are you waiting for?" She asked as she adjusted her bag.

"You," he replied as he pushed a burger and fries to the other side of the table and started opening his own.

Unable to politely refuse, Kaminari sat down and opened the paper to eat the lukewarm burger. "Thanks, I guess."

"So, Chiho and Maou have been worried about you, then I get a job after we have our little talk. What's going on?" Lucifer asked.

"I felt bad for the way I reacted, so I took you out of the police database, then called a few people and got you a job interview. You're welcome." She sighed, "It was a little more than I could handle."

"Look, the way we get our magic is through human emotions. You were not the happiest person when you left, and every time you've been brought up at the apartment, Chiho would get depressed." Lucifer explained.

"But, like I said, I'm not Chiho," she told him. "I'm not obsessed and forgiving at the drop of a hat. I'm a bit more careful. And all of you have been so nice since I got home...but, it's not that easy. There are some things I can't handle while Chi can. If you decided to just get up and walk out of here, I would have some sort of breakdown trying to figure out what I said wrong. I can't handle putting effort into something that will just end."

"End?"

"If you decided to go back," she clarified as she pushed her hair from her eyes. "Some things, I just can't do."

"So, you don't think we're evil?" He asked.

"I think you're trying to start over, but I could be wrong. I don't think the great and mighty Demon king will want to stay much longer now that he knows he has to get an education to help him climb the corporate ladder."

"Yeah, that's what he said," Lucifer replied as he looked out the window. "It's been weird not having to stay in the apartment all the time. By the way, you picked the best place to get me a job. A movie theatre is perfect! I haven't felt so powerful since I destroyed the bridge."

"Emotions, right," Kaminari muttered as she sipped on her coke. "Well, is it fun? I've never worked there, but I dated the now manager. It was a mutual breakup with no bad feelings."

His eye widened, "That's why he hates me? He gets pissed every time he sees me."

"I don't know why," she replied with a frown. "He ended it, and I was fine with it, then I left for Europe for a year. Ohhhhh..." She laughed, "There were about fifteen rumors floating around on the trip that I was banging all the natives."

"Were you?" He asked with a smirk. "Might as well tell the truth. I'll know if you're lying."

She frowned, "Jeez, thanks. I'll try to remember that this jacket makes me look like a whore."

She picked up the tray with the collected trash and dumped it before walking out of MgRonalds, Lucifer whining as he followed her. "Kami, that's not what I meant."

She smiled, "Yeah, I know. I got tired of sitting there." She sighed as she pulled out her phone to check the time. "It's not as late as I thought it would be. Well, you've been free for a couple weeks. Let me show you around."

The two walked around the small sector, talking about various things that came to mind and some of the stores they passed. She told him about various places that looked abandoned but were actually some of the best restaurants in the city. He told her more about Ente Isla and the war he left behind. He told her the truth about the day he blew up the bridge, when he had kidnapped her sister. He expected her to be mad, but instead received a lecture on how stupid her sister was. When she expressed more interest about his life in Heaven and his life as Maou's general, he was more than happy to tell her in return for teaching him more about Europe.

"Isn't it a little late for you to still be out?" Maou asked as the two neared the angel's home.

"Hey, Maou," Kaminari greeted. "Is Chi heading home?"

"No, she's upstairs, if you want to come in," Maou replied as he headed to the metal stair.

Kaminari followed Lucifer up the stairs and into the small apartment that had become claustrophobic with the amount of people and boxes in the room.

"What's with the boxes?" Lucifer asked.

"These aren't yours?" Ashiya asked.

"I learned my lesson, okay?!"

"I wonder if the landlady wants us to sell more stuff," Maou mumbled as he opened a box. He sighed as he lifted up a bikini top like it was a venomous snake. "I think it is."

"Dang," Kaminari snorted as she snatched it from him. "There's no way. Is your land lady a hippo?"

"Hey! I was thinking about getting one!" Chiho exclaimed. "Maybe you should get one. You would look cute."

Kaminari dropped the clothing back in the box as she shuddered, "No way."

"She's too small anyway," Lucifer commented as he opened another box. "Hey, there's some winter stuff, too." He pulled out a large bright pink swim suit cover. "Oh, never mind."

"People aren't going to buy this right now," Maou grumbled. "All we can do is leave it in the boxes."

"Why not take pictures of the stuff and put them on the internet?" Kaminari asked. "People from everywhere will be able to buy them."

"She wants to keep it within the community," Lucifer said.

Kaminari shrugged, "That's on her, then."

"This stuff doesn't look Hawaiian," Maou said as he pulled out a bag of coffee.

"She went to Brazil," Kaminari said as she took the bag from him. Her heart was pounding as she stared at the slick, shiny bag. "This is so stupid! Why must you be wonderful and expensive?!"

"Sire, I found the letter," Ashiya announced.

Everyone in the room went silent as Maou took the envelope from his general. "It's okay," Maou said, his voice shaking slightly. "W-we can handle whatever is inside this envelope!"

No one in the room breathed he opened the envelope and pulled out some paper, a photo falling face down on the floor.

"So, who is going to pick it up?" Lucifer asked as they stood in silence, just staring at the picture.

Kaminari took a deep breath and let it go, picking up the picture and stepping away from the group to see the image. "Awh, what a cute puppy!"

"No, don't!" Chiho exclaimed while Lucifer took the picture and almost threw up.

Everyone was pale except Kaminari who was crying from laughing so hard. As far as she knew, the landlady wasn't even a person. Her purple hair was tied into a mess on her large, fat head while she wore aviator sunglasses, and peaked over the top, red eyes glinting in the harsh sun. Her skin was a dreadful dark orange color, like a bad spray tan, and it seemed she was taking some sort of "glamor shot" since the straps of what might as well have been just a thick rope fell over her massive arms, what little material there was struggling to hide her massive breasts. The evident g-string was nightmarish as well, being almost the same color orange as her skin. She was definitely going to be scarred for life, but making someone else look at the dreadful picture with some hope was too much to resist.

"You are the most evil person in this world," Ashiya grumbled, his face slightly green.

Kaminari simply laughed as she took the picture from the floor and threw it away. "Now that we have all been traumatized, let's see what else is in her, or at least organize the boxes a little better."

"I do not think we have actually met," the blue haired girl who had remained mostly quiet said as she made her way to Kaminari. Kaminari couldn't help but notice the girl's strange attire. Why was she wearing a kimono? "Good Chiho has talked about you a lot. My name is Suzuno Kamazuki. It is nice to meet you."

Kaminari awkwardly bowed, "My name is Kaminari Sasaki. It's a pleasure to meet you as well."

"Oh, I guess we haven't been introduced either," the girl with long red hair said as she stood up. Kaminari recognized her from when Chiho got her surgery and the world seemed to fall apart when Maou had returned to the hospital with her. "I'm Emi Yusa."

The group made an effort to look through all the boxes, piling clothing, coffee, candy, rocks, hammocks and pots then packing them away again, labeling the boxes accordingly.

Kaminari yawned and stretched before putting her shoes on and shrugging on her jacket. "Let's go home, Chi. It's almost midnight."

"Okay," Chiho agreed with a dreamy smile, but a dismal voice.

Kaminari rolled her eyes when she saw what was wrong with her sister. Maou was putting a jacket on he, but talking to Ashiya. "You dealt with that for a year?" She asked Lucifer as he handed her a bag of coffee.

"Yep."

"What's this for?" She asked him as she stared at the coffee in her hands.

"For helping me get out of here, and she said we could have some."

"Wait, what did you say?" Emi suddenly asked. "You've been leaving the apartment?!"

"Emi, it's late and I have to open," Maou said. "This can wait."

"I can explain everything," Chiho said as she headed to the door. "Don't worry, Ms. Yusa. It's not that bad."

"Goodnight," Kaminari told the guys as she waved, closing the door behind herself as Chiho and Emi walked ahead of her.

"You got Urushihara a job?!" Emi screeched as Kaminari caught up with them.

Chiho giggled, "She's got this massive crush on Urushihara."

"WHAT?!" Emi screamed so loud Chiho covered her mouth to make sure she didn't wake anyone, but some dogs started barking. "You don't even know him! He's a wanted criminal!"

"Look, he said he was good at hiding secrets, so I looked to see what they were. I found him on the criminal database and saw the video of when he destroyed the city, and I watched it get put back together. He told me the truth, and I stopped associating with them for two weeks. He actually visited me at work to see if I was ever going to come back. But, I found him a job. He's helping out now, and that's what matters."

Emi groaned, "Great. The one person that's actually a threat is out and about."

"He told me about Ente Isla, how he killed people, burned down villages, and how you thought you had killed him. But, he doesn't have that here. It's almost like whoever he was in Ente Isla was a lie, and he's finally where he wants to be. All of them seem to be that way."

"Well, that's not the case!" Emi yelled.

"If you didn't so focused on Maou all the time, do you think you could be happy here?" Kaminari asked her.

"As long as that loser is still alive, I'll never be happy!" Emi growled.

"You're not in Ente Isla anymore, Emi," Kaminari told her. "They didn't kill my family or burn down my village, but you're not the only one that's lost something to someone else. I know what it's like to watch your world fall apart. Maybe one day, you'll be able to forgive him and let that go."

"So that's why you've been happier," Chiho commented. "You never said anything."

Kaminari smiled slightly, some tears in the corner of her eyes, "Just because I've moved on doesn't mean I'm ready to talk about it." Her gaze moved back to Emi. "I'm willing to share the lessons I've learned, but that's about all I can say right now. Not even Chi knows the whole story. But understand, you'll be happy once you let it go. C'mon, Chi. Dad will have the search copters out soon if we don't hurry."

The sisters parted ways from Emi, too tired to continue the conversation. Chiho knew Kaminari wouldn't talk about it anyway. Kaminari, however, knew what she would be doing when she got home. It had been a while since she had last seen the photos, but it was time to see them again. After all, the anniversary was coming up.

They didn't announce their arrival, simply resetting the alarm and heading to their respective rooms. Kaminari sighed as she picked up her laptop and turned it on. She logged out of the account named Kaminari and logged onto the second account, Ishii.

A picture of a family of five popped up as the desktop background. A man with chestnut colored hair was laughing, his eyes closed as he held his arms up to shield himself from the oncoming water attack. He was dressed in a very professional manner, a red long-sleeve button down and black slacks. Despite his professional appearance, his socks didn't match, one being black, the other white. Behind him was a lady trying to not laugh. Her sapphire eyes glittered in the sun as her brown hair moved in the wind. She was wearing a blue tankini and pink translucent cover, a small child giggling as he watched the man get splashed. In the water initiating the attack was a teen with dark hair that was soaked, but still wavy due to its unruly curls. His green eyes glistened with happiness and mischief as the wave of water moved toward the man. In mid air was a girl with chestnut hair like the man's, launching herself at the boy in the water to try to get a surprise attack on him.

She must have been four at the time. It was the last photo she had of her family. Back when she was Kaminari Ishii. Kaminari had kept this part of her life secret from everyone. No one outside court during those long months of a trial needed to know what happened. Senichi, Chiho's father had been an officer on the case and had brought her home a few times to play with Chiho. With no family to take her, the Sasakis adopted her.

With a shaky sigh, she moved the cursor to a file labeled 'Bad Idea' and double clicked. She took a deep breath and released it as she looked through the images of the crime scenes she had gotten from the police database. There wasn't much blood at first, but a lot of stuff had been thrown around.

She sighed as she stopped on a picture of little Yamato. Her younger brother by three years lay motionless in the middle of the floor, covered in bruises from when her mother had tried to run away with him, but the man tripped her causing her to land almost right on top of him. The fall alone had killed the boy, but her mother's weight only made it more official.

She clicked to the next picture to find her father laying on the floor, still tied to the chair, a bullet in his chest. They said he suffered, that the bullet had been one that exploded and sent shrapnel all through his body, destroying all of his organs.

The next picture was of her mother, naked and bound to a bed, her hands and feet bound to the corners of the bed. They said she suffered as well. She had been raped and sodomized. There was a rope around her neck that had been tied to the headboard, where if she ever lowered her head, she would start suffocating.

She clicked the next picture, which was probably the worst of them. The entire room had been dyed red due to the blood. Reiji had been sodomized by multiple items, each harsher than the last. They said that was done after he died, though. No, her brother had been almost dismembered. They had cut through every limb, leaving only a few tendons to hold him together in one piece. The way they had displayed him on the bed was stretching him out, showing the tendons that barely kept him together. His eyes had been gouged out and placed on the nightstand.

Kaminari clicked the next picture. It was a large puddle of blood in the middle of the living room, four stab marks in the floor. She was so small, it didn't take much to pin her down, but the four knives that were used went through he wrists and ankles. After that, they had sliced her arms and in hopes of ending it all, stabbed her in the chest. The cops arrived while the teens tried to leave, and the paramedics managed to get her to the hospital in time. She didn't know how much time she spent in the hospital. It took months to fix her wrists and ankles and her arms had to be stitched up leaving long scars on her arms. She wore long sleeved shirts year round to keep her almost zebra printed arms hidden.

The people responsible were teenagers, around her brother's age. Some girl he had turned down for prom lost her mind over the rejection. And Kaminari had witnessed some of it. She watched Yamato and her father die while listening to the screams of her mother and brother.

Due to the brutality of the case, they would never leave prison, even though they were sixteen. With a shaky sigh and loud sniffle, she closed the Bad Idea file and opened Good Times. She didn't care how loud she was as she laughed at the videos saved in the file. It helped. She had all the pictures from Good Times printed out and all over her room, but the videos were priceless. The videos were saved on seven CDs, and eight flash drives, just in case she needed to get a new computer.

She smiled as she watched what was probably her favorite video. Reiji was trying to teach her how to skateboard when she was three. Instead of standing on it, she would sit down on the rough surface and use her feet to move herself around. Then, her brother picked her up and carefully stood on the skateboard before pushing off and skating slowly around, Kaminari giggling as she held onto her brother's neck for dear life.

By the time 4AM came around, she finally closed her computer. Maybe it was time to tell the story. The thought made her heart pound. She wasn't ready. As she yawned, she let the thought fade away. She sent Chiho a text to tell Kisaki that she wasn't feeling great, so she wasn't coming in. She avoided seeing those pictures because they exhausted her. They would always haunt her, but it was time to let that go. She had managed to forgive those teens for what they did. She decided to delete the pictures when she woke up.

"It sucks Kami isn't feeling good today," Maou said as he stood at the register. "Don't you visit people when they're sick?"

"T-trust me, you don't want to see her," Chiho replied with a nervous smile. She sighed sadly, "Mr. Maou, something very bad happened to Kami when she was younger. She never talks about it, and I don't know details, but that's why she isn't coming in today. Ms. Yusa went on a rant about what you did in Ente Isla, and it brought up those memories for Kami. She was up until 4 this morning watching videos and looking through pictures. But, she said she had finally forgiven whoever hurt her, and if she could, Ms. Yusa could, too."

"I don't know, Chi," Maou replied with a sigh. "I did a lot of bad things in Ente Isla. I don't deserve that forgiveness."

Chiho laughed awkwardly, "Kami is a lot better at this than I am, but I'm sure she would have said 'Does anybody?'"

Maou smiled, "I think I will go see her after work. I would like to know what it's like to be on the receiving end of true evil."

"She won't be awake until tomorrow," Chiho told him. "When she gets upset like that, she stays asleep. I think she relives it in her dreams. If you can take her nightmares away, that would be nice."

"I can do that," Maou said with a smile.

When Chiho finally got off work, the two walked together to her home. When they arrived, Chiho quietly opened her sister's bedroom door to see her sister crying in her sleep. She was curled up, holding a raggedy turtle close to her chest, the only thing she had kept from her former life. Maou silently looked around the room at all the photos, some containing people he hadn't seen before.

"Man, I could easily destroy part of a city with what she's giving out," Maou muttered as he approached the sleeping girl. He gently placed his fingers on her head, allowing some magic to release to keep her from waking up. Anger and hate rushed through his body as he got a small glimpse of her dreams. A small spark of red energy came from his fingertips and she immediately relaxed, almost becoming comatose. "I don't think I want to know what happened to her."

To get his revenge, Lucifer searched for Kaminari's past. He didn't like what he found. After finding that her name was Kaminari Ishii, he found the awful story regarding her family and even managed to find the pictures.

"Ashiya, are we evil?" Lucifer asked as he looked through the pictures.

"I would say that we were," the pale haired general replied. "Why do you ask?"

After hiding everything that would say it was about Kaminari, he invited the Demon to look at the pictures. "Human children did this because this boy turned a girl down. They were about Chiho and Kami's age when they did this. If we're evil, then what are they?"

"I was unaware of the violence a human could actually do," Ashiya said as he looked at the picture of the teenage boy. "Compared to that, we were merely soldiers conquering lands for our king. If we remember, we should show Emilia. Maybe she won't be so rude to King Satan."

"What about me?" Maou asked as he stepped in and took off his shoes.

"Well, I challenged Kaminari to finding stuff out about us, so I decided it was only fair to do the same, and I came across this." Lucifer said as the Demon king came to see the pictures.

"Lucifer, turn that off and never look at it again," Maou said. With a few clicks, the website was gone, but Lucifer and Ashiya were looking at the king, wanting to know what had gotten under his skin. "Kami called out today. Emi had gone on a rant about being friends with us and everything like she usually does, but Kami said something about if she could forgive the person that hurt her, Emi could forgive me. So, I decided to visit Kami, even though she was asleep. I had to use magic to get her nightmares to go away, but I saw part of her dream. She was there when that happened. That was her family, and she saw them die. Not to mention, she was attacked as well. Chi can't know that we know this, and don't say anything to Kami about it."

Lucifer sighed, "Well, Kami's right. If she can move on from this, Emi can get over what happened in Ente Isla."

"Tell me about it," Maou agreed. "Maybe we should do something for her."

"Sire, I'm afraid we don't have the room for it," Ashiya said as he looked at the stacked boxes against the wall.

"Lucifer, you can take her to a movie," Maou said as he got a cup of water then sat at the table to read a book.

"And have Emilia ruin the movie? No thanks. Besides, I'm trying to find another job."

"You didn't quit, did you?" Maou asked.

"No, but I think he's about to fire me. Kaminari left out the fact she dated the manager at one time and now he's all pissed when I come in. She said it was a clean break up, but it's not looking like it now."

"I like the thought of free movies," Maou said.

"I can only take one person, and it's not going to be you." Urushihara grumbled as he stood up.

"You can't go to movies alone. It's boring."

"Our schedules don't match to where we could see one. Monday nights I don't have to close, and I'm not going in there alone with a guy. Someone else would have to come, then they'll get all pissy because they didn't get in free. So, if I go, I will go alone or take Kami with me."

"Why not Suzuno?" Ashiya asked curiously. Lucifer didn't have the best history with Emi and Chiho, but Suzuno hadn't seen the bad things.

"I'll have to explain everything. That will ruin the movie."

"That's a lot of dates you two could go on," Maou smirked. "She's going to be transferred to the amusement park MgRonalds in a few days."

Lucifer expressionless face told the Demon King what he thought of his little joke. "Dates are boring and stupid," He said as he headed to the closet to grab his uniform.

"Have you been on one?" Maou asked curiously.

"No, but I watched the date you had with Chiho. She was too timid to do anything and barely able to hold a conversation when she looked at you. Why would you do something like that when you can just hang out and not have to pretend you're someone you're not? And some of the books I've read while looking up how to get our magic back have told me way more about dating than I care to know."

Maou shrugged, "Well, say what you want. I enjoyed my time with Chi that day, until you destroyed the station."

"You're welcome," Lucifer replied as he pulled his black hoody on. "I won't be back until late. There's some midnight premier happening and I've got to stay until everyone leaves."

"Later."

Maou and Ashiya watched the door close behind their purple haired roommate. "I think she's good for him." Maou said as he crossed his arms over his chest and smiled.

"He does seem to be more like himself," Ashiya agreed. "Now that he has responsibilities again, maybe he'll be more use to helping us get magic."

"I don't know if I want to go back, Ashiya," Maou replied. "Everything here is just so simple. I don't have to be a king in this world. And being human has helped me understand what I was doing was wrong. No one is afraid of me here. Besides, I don't think Lucifer will leave now, anyway."

"I highly doubt he is interested in having a relationship with Kaminari."

"Not yet, at least," Maou replied.

"Does that logic apply to you and Chiho?" Ashiya asked.

"I don't have time for dating," Maou said. "I have a company to take over."

"Sire, you don't have the education."

"But, I will. And when I do, I will be the best student there is!"


	3. Chapter 3

Kaminari was practically shaking in fury as she listened to her sister's ridiculous rant on how she couldn't tutor Maou. "Would you stop with the Maou thing?!" Kaminari yelled at her sister. Chiho immediately went silent under her sister's demand. Ashiya and Lucifer went silent as well. Even Lucifer turned away from his computer to see what had happened. At the moment, Maou wasn't home leaving the two girls with Ashiya and Lucifer, but the two demons had been arguing, and due to Kaminari's outburst, their argument had stopped. "I am not interested in him at all. And out of everyone that Maou knows, I am the only one capable of teaching him what he needs to know. I tutored students for three years! Every single grade level, Chi. I was in advanced courses for a reason! You'll be too busy daydreaming about a wedding to even be able to teach him how to read! You are not capable of handling this responsibility. If you want him to be successful, you let me tutor him, or hire someone to do it for you. I charged ¥5,088 an hour. Do you think you can afford that?"

Chiho sighed, "I know. I think I should be here, so you can tutor me, too."

"I've arranged it with Tai to let me have the same off days as Maou so I can tutor him. If you end up having the time, that's fine. But, if I see you slack at all, I will lock you in the closet so you'll just get to hear Maou."

"Wow," Lucifer said. "You would make a terrible teacher."

"Don't get involved," Kaminari said sharply, immediately silencing the fallen angel. Her eyes were back on Chiho who shied away from the angry gaze. "If you even borderline hinder me from teaching him, I will personally kick you out of this apartment. He can't be distracted. He wants to be ready by next year. By then, he'll know more than enough to pass the test."

"What about a Ashiya and Urushihara?" She questioned.

"What about them?"

"What if they distract him?"

"I'm not going to kick someone out of their house, you dork," Kaminari told her. "Lucifer works a lot now, so he might not even be here, and if anything, Alciel would be right next to him, trying to learn as much as possible as well."

Chiho gave a pathetic look to her sister. "Okay..."

"That doesn't work on me," Kaminari said as she grabbed her bag from the floor. "I'm going to Bell's. I'll be back." Before she opened the door, she looked at Ashiya, "Hey, you wanna come? It's a pretty cool thrift store. Ashiya practically threw his apron across the room as he came to join her for the adventure.

"You can't leave me here with him!" Chiho cried as she pointed at Lucifer who was chewing on a pocky stick.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lucifer said as he stood up. "I have work in a couple of hours and Bell's is close by. You'll be alone."

Chiho turned a dark red, "A-alone?"

"Just don't go through their underwear drawer," Kaminari said as she opened the door. She smiled at her sister and winked, "Let me know if you find one."

"Kami!" Chiho screeched, her face reddening more.

Lucifer laughed while Ashiya rolled his eyes as the three stepped out. Kaminari smiled when she stood on the sidewalk. The skies were clear and the sun was bright and warm. It was still cold enough to need a jacket, but the deathly grip of winter was finally fading into the warm hugs of spring.

"You should be nicer to your sister," Ashiya scolded. "She's been very kind to all of us, except Urushihara, but he deserves it."

"Dude, that is so not fair!" Lucifer exclaimed.

"Urushihara is right, Ashiya," Kaminari replied as she looked up at the tall Demon. "He's actually helping out now. You can be a little nicer to him."

"Yeah, Ashiya," Urushihara smirked.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. You screwed up quite a bit, so you're not off the hook yet."

Lucifer glared at her, but it faded away when she opened the door to Bell's. The musty scent of old storage and mothballs immediately took over their senses causing Urushihara to sneeze. Ashiya stopped Kaminari from walking on while he watched Urushihara sneeze five more times before he sighed and groaned, "Why?"

"Urushihara, you must buy some allergy medicine and keep it with you. Not everywhere is going to be mostly dust free and cat free." Ashiya scolded.

"You're weird," Kaminari sighed as she searched her bag. She frowned as she kept digging through all the stuff she kept in there. Lucifer stood still as Kaminari started pulling things out of her bag and putting them in his hands. A wallet, a charger, a small bag, another small bag, a coin purse, and three large piles of receipts later, she finally pulled out some allergy medicine.

"No wonder you couldn't find it," Ashiya muttered as Lucifer dropped everything back into her bag.

"And I didn't even take out everything," she replied as she reached in the bag once more and pulled out a bottle of water. She opened the bottle and poured out two blue pills then closed it and shoved it back into her bag. "That should help," she told the fallen angel as he took the small pills from her and the bottle of water.

"I hate pills," he grumbled as he popped them into his mouth and quickly swallowed the water.

The adventure in the store officially began, Ashiya following Kaminari around while she looked for old college text books. "What on earth is this?"

Kaminari put down the biology book she was looking at and headed to see what Ashiya had found. Her heart felt like it fell to the floor as she reached for the weird cyclops lantern that had a face. It was Chochin-obake. The strange pillow had a slit in the mouth, which she reached in and pulled out a fluff filled fire. At the sight of the dried blood on the creature, she dropped it and stepped back, trying to calm down as she stared at it.

She rushed outside, throwing up in the alley by the store. As she tried to calm down, she only threw up again before falling to her knees and just gasping. Tears started to fall from her eyes as she just fell onto her side, curling up and sobbing.

Ashiya stood a few feet away, heartbroken as he watched the fragile human cry. Maou was the comforter in the group. Lucifer was soon at his side, the same look on his face. "What happened?"

Ashiya handed him the lantern thing that she had dropped so suddenly. "When she pulled its insides out, she ran out here."

"That's because it was hers," Lucifer said as he pulled the inside of the pillow out.

"How do you know that?"

"It was in one of her pictures. Watch her, will ya? I found something I needed."

"You really don't care about her current condition?"

"Look, I don't know what to do. Let me get my stuff then we'll head home."

"Don't you have work?"

"Yeah, but I have enough time to take her home," Lucifer replied as he headed back inside.

When Lucifer returned, Ashiya frowned at the amount of stuff he bought. "Honestly, you need to learn self control."

The small man ignored him as he passed the heavy bags to Ashiya and headed to the collapsed girl. Ashiya could feel the magic he was using as he helped her to her feet. He took her down the alleyway, disappearing from Ashiya's sight. After a moment, a shadow caught his attention and a black feather floated down from the sky. Ashiya smiled slightly as he started walking home. Perhaps everything would be okay after all.

When Ashiya opened the door to the apartment, he found all the shudders closed and the lights off. The table had been moved so Lucifer's box could be put out. The evident darkness seemed to flow through the room, like wisps of shadow, slowly crawling away. There was a purple glow in the midst of the darkness, peering out, focused on the box in the floor. Lucifer was definitely trying to stay as calm as possible while he watched the box on the floor.

"Is she asleep?" Ashiya asked quietly.

"Yes," the fallen angel replied, his voice low and cold. The shadows around him started to fade as he walked toward Ashiya, "Take care of her. I'll check on her when I get off work."


	4. Chapter 4

Kaminari's head ached as she started waking up. She felt comfortable, though. The blanket that was on her was heavy and warm, then she was literally in a box which helped her feel safe. She sighed as she curled up a bit. She didn't care where she was. She just wanted to stay in this weird, safe cocoon. It felt like it was keeping the bad dreams away. She poked her head out of the box to find Ashiya quietly looming over the stove in the dark.

"Ashiya?" She called quietly.

The pale haired Demon looked over his shoulder, searching for the source of the sound before looking at her. "Kaminari," he greeted with a relieved smile. "How are you feeling?"

"I...I don't really know," she replied as she pushed herself out of the box. "Ashiya, can I talk to you about something?"

He turned on the light and brought some tea to the table for the two of them and sat down across from her, "Of course. Did something happen?"

She sighed as she ran her fingers through her messy hair and stared at the tea in front of her. "Something like that."

Ashiya sat silently while he watched Kaminari take her shirt off. He wasn't sure what was going on until she had taken it off entirely, revealing a tank top she wore beneath her shirt. His golden eyes focused on all the strange designs on her arms. They were scars, sharp and thin, jagged and deep. On her wrists were wrist bands that she took off to reveal a large scarred over dent on the top of her wrists.

"Something happened many years ago," she began as she swallowed hard, tears already starting to fall from her eyes. "There was this girl that had a crush on my brother, almost as bad as Chi's on Maou. She asked my brother to the dance, but he turned her down. She didn't take the rejection so well. A few days later, she broke into our house with three others." She placed her head on the table as she tried to catch her breath. "There...there was so much blood, so much pain, so many screams." She finally sat up, her terrified eyes focused on Ashiya, her only anchor in her sanity at the moment. "They separated us. While they were trying to tie my father down to a chair, my mother made a run for it. She had my brother in her arms..." she tried to calm her breathing, closing her eyes and swallowing before panting more and repeating the process until she could finally say what she needed to say. "One of them tripped her... she...she dropped Yamato." She buried her face in her hands as she tried to control her sobs. "He was only one, Ashiya! He was too young to die! He...he was just a baby." She sniffled as she wiped the tears from her face, "He's the only one that didn't feel any pain. The impact of the fall killed him instantly. M-my mother landed on top of him..." She took a few deep breaths before continuing. "One of them took my mother and another took my brother. The girl went with the guy that took my brother, but one stayed with me and my father. He spoke with my father about why this was happening. Once he finished talking, he shot him in the chest. They said it was internal bleeding that killed him. The, uh," she sniffled some, "the bullet exploded. Shrapnel tore apart his organs." She shivered some and put her shirt back on. "T-there was nothing I could do. I was tied up on the other side of the room, listening to my mother and brother scream and beg for their lives. This guy decided he wasn't done."

Ashiya shifted slightly at her change. Her pale eyes were like a freezing storm on the horizon, dangerous and angry, ready to destroy whatever was in its path. He had seen that look in Maou's eyes before when Lucifer was destroying the city, and he had seen it in Lucifer's eyes before he left for work. "He took four knives and stabbed them to my wrists and ankles, pinning me to the floor another knife he used to just cut me in whatever ways he seemed fit for the situation. He kept telling me how beautiful my screams were and how he couldn't wait to hear them when I was older. One of the others didn't want to take that chance, so they stabbed me in the chest." She was seething, barely understandable as she spoke through her teeth, tears of rage and hate rolling down her cheeks as she glowered at Ashiya. "The three teens that had gotten my mom and brother were caught when the police arrived, but the man that tortured me got away."

They sat in silence while she tried to calm down. She rested her elbows on the table, living the event by telling someone had awoken more emotions than she thought. She had her head in her hands. She was focused on trying to stay conscious. The emotions were going to rip her apart if she get control of herself. The amount of anger she had just experienced was too much for her small body to handle. She could feel the pain all over again, hear the screams. Besides her dreams, she had never really relived the dream, but she was reliving it, and she was angry. There was little sadness left in her, only fury that one escaped. One that she would find, or he would find her. If she ever saw him again, she would destroy him.

After Ashiya took a sip of his tea, he gently put the cup down and sighed, "After fighting humans for so long and knowing what demons are capable of, it's hard to say whether those people were truly human."

With Kaminari composed once again, she managed a logical response, "In your world, you were at war. Each side was doing what they were told, both fighting for what they believed in. People die, homes are destroyed, that's just war. They did that for no reason."

Ashiya raised an eyebrow, "I thought you were more complex than that."

"Complex?" She questioned as she sipped her tea. She never considered herself complex. If Chiho didn't exist, she would consider herself to be one of the more simple minded people in the world.

"Your views on war are rather simple for you to have avoided us for two weeks."

"This world has wars. I had a lot to consider. I knew I would have to accept you one day, but I didn't know how."

He nodded, understanding where she was coming from as far as that mentality went. "The man that tortured you, do you believe he will come for you again?"

"He might," she replied sadly. "I try to stay around people, even though I don't like it." She smiled slightly, "But I have two Demon generals and King Satan himself to help me out if I get in trouble."

Ashiya smiled, "I don't know if Satan will allow us to fight humans, though he may make an exception for you. We will be more than happy to assist you in whatever ways we can."

She smiled slightly as she took a sip of her tea, "So, how did I get here? I thought we went to Bell's."

"You got sick after looking at something then passed out on the sidewalk. Urushihara brought you here."

"Yeah, I guess he doesn't know where I live," she muttered while looking at her tea. "Well, here is just as nice, though he didn't have to do all of that for me." Both of them looked at the strange bedding the fallen angel had given her.

"He likes having you around," Ashiya replied with a smile. "He's finally acting like himself again."

"What was he like?" She asked.

"He was an incredible general. Of course, some demons never considered him a demon, since he's a fallen angel, but he was well known for how sinister he could be. He was very strict on his forces, more than King Satan was. Urushihara actually took part in raising him. He's one of the reasons my king is such a strong leader." The general looked at the computer for a moment before returning his guilt stricken gaze back to the emotional girl. "Lucifer was doing research on you when he found the truth. I've seen the pictures. In all my years, I never imagined something so horrible."

Her eyes moved to the table, trying to process the correct reaction. She was angry that he had found out, but at the same time, she had no right to be. She had snooped on his life, and it was only logical he would do the same.

The door opened to Maou struggling to walk. "I got sent to the amusement park," he groaned as he fell to the floor. "Why is Urushihara's box on the floor?"

Kaminari looked at Ashiya for a moment before releasing a shaky breath, "He got it out for me to use. I-I passed out earlier, and he brought me here and...put me in a box."

"Passed out?" Maou asked as he crawled to the table to join them at the table. "What happened?"

"She told me about the pictures Lucifer showed us," Ashiya replied. "Sire, are you alright?"

"Yeah," he groaned as he fell onto his back. "Just really tired and sore."

"Water park?" Kaminari asked.

"Water park," he affirmed, tired and in agony. "I never want to go back."

Kaminari finished her tea then stood up, "I should head home. Thank you for taking care of me."

"Ashiya can walk you home, if you want," Maou said shamelessly volunteering his general. "The last thing we need is Lucifer jumping down our throats for letting you walk home alone."

"That's a bit extreme," Kaminari replied as Ashiya stood up to join her.

The Demon king rolled to his side where he was staring up at her. "Look, he's been a total pain since he got here, and it only got worse after I became his legal guardian. Now that he has a job, he's starting to act like himself again. It's actually kind of nice. He's happier now that he's able to freely roam the city. He has you to thank for that. He never leaves a debt unpaid, even if it takes him over a year to make it up. You gave him his life back. He's not just going to forget that." His red eyes moved to Ashiya, "Is it too much trouble to take her by the theatre so he'll know she's okay?"

Ashiya groaned, "I was hoping to avoid the subway."

Kaminari stood silently by Ashiya as the annoying metal tracks screeched to a halt at their stop. He followed her as she led the way to the theatre nearby. "I don't see a reason for us to be here," Kaminari commented. "Does he need to know that badly?"

"If the king says it's important, then it's important," Ashiya said firmly.

"Yeah, but it's going to be weird. My ex is the manager here," Kaminari muttered as they approached the theatre. The moment they stepped in, Kaminari heard her name, or what Jaden used to call her.

"Hey, Kay," the tall, blond haired man greeted as he walked up. His dark eyes shot a piercing glare toward Ashiya before he smiled down at the girl. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, hey, guys," Lucifer greeted as he swept the floor. He paused a moment, his intense violet gaze moving slowly over Kaminari, checking for any injury or blemish that would show any signs of her being even slightly bothered. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes," Kaminari confirmed with a smile. "Thank you for taking care of me, Urushihara. It means a lot to me."

"Whatever," he grumbled as he went back to sweeping, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

Though no one else noticed, Ashiya could tell the change in the fallen angel. It had been no accident that he had shown up when he did. Maou must have told him that Kaminari would come by when she was better.

"Kay, can I talk to you for a moment?" Jaden asked.

"Ashiya is taking me home," she replied as she smiled at the tall general next to her. "Maybe next time."

"Uh, sure," he replied lamely. "You want to get coffee Friday?"

"Sure, I guess," Kaminari replied with a shrug. "I open at the park, so I can't stay long."

His dark eyes lit up as he smiled. "Awesome! I'll pick you up?"

"Yeah, whatever," she replied, her eyes going back to Urushihara who was dumping out the dustpan into the trash can. "Thank you...Hanzo."

Her purple haired friend looked at her and smiled, "I'll see you later."

With a wave toward Jaden, she left with Ashiya.

"You are aware you agreed to go on a date with him, aren't you?" Ashiya asked her as they headed to the train station.

"Yeah, but I didn't want to get Urushihara fired," she replied.

"Turning him down would have gotten Urushihara fired?" Ashiya asked in shock. "Why?"

"He's always been a very jealous person. Even his other exes can't come to the movie theatre with other guys because he will up the prices of their tickets and snacks. It would have been better to text him that I was fine. He might get sent home early, or have a few days taken from him."

"I hardly see why that boy should be a manager," Ashiya grumbled as they boarded the train.

"It's his theatre. Well, his family's. His sister was supposed to be the manager, but Jaden volunteered to take her place so he could see all the girls that came in to see the scary movies and invite them back to the theatre at a discount or free."

"Oh? And women actually buy that story?"

"He managed to convince Chiho," she replied with a smile. "But, what kind of sister would I be without ruining a date?"

"You dated him as well," Ashiya pointed out.

Kaminari sighed sadly, "I'm not proud of it, but I might still be with him if I hadn't gone to Europe."

"Are you not planning on dating him again?" Ashiya asked her.

"He made it a point we wouldn't be getting back together if I went to Europe. He didn't want me to experience something like that without him, but I wasn't going to miss the opportunity. Chances to explore the world don't come often enough, Ashiya. You have to take them when you can."

"You are very different from your sister," he smiled. "I truly believe if Maou went home, she would waste the rest of her life away trying to find a way to Ente Isla."

"She has an innocent mind," Kaminari said solemnly.

"What do you mean?" He asked as he peered down at the girl who had been cheerful enough to dreadful melancholy, her eyes focused on the floor.

"She hasn't considered her own mortality. I don't know if she plans to find a way to become a Demon or something bizarre like that, but she hasn't taken the time to think about how she will die one day while you continue to live on. We will die, Ashiya. Our own mortality will be the end of us. You don't have to live by this human curse. You can live longer, maybe forever in Ente Isla. Here, in this world, there is only death."

Ashiya studied her for a while. She really believed all that existed in the world was death. She had good reason, but even the Hero Emilia wasn't so morbid. He finally smiled and placed his hand on her shoulder, "If you focus on such dark things, you will be engulfed by them. Try to focus on the happier things in life."

"I think that's what's wrong," Kaminari replied as she looked up at him. "I've been looking at the happier things for too long." She finally smiled, "I know what to do. I'm not going home, so you head back. I think it's time to be alone."

"That isn't safe," Ashiya said firmly. "You shouldn't be alone right now."

She shrugged, "I'll be fine." When the train came to a stop, Kaminari got off, leaving Ashiya. "I'll let you know when I get home."

Ashiya waved with a defeated frown on his lips. "Be careful, Kaminari. Urushihara is more dangerous and more protective of you than you think."

She left the train station, heading to a nearby cemetery where markers for her parents and siblings graves lay, though they had been cremated. She had never been before. After stopping by a small florist, she slowly made her way to the field of stone. Angels and crosses loomed over the still grass plain. Frequently walked paths formed strange dirty veins that moved through the stone rows. There were others visiting the memories of their loved ones making her feel more awkward, but less crazy. As she roamed the silent yard, she couldn't help but wonder if anyone had been forgotten with time. Had people stopped visiting them?

Her feet came to a stop in front of a somewhat tall cross, two angels facing each other, both holding swords as if to protect those they were placed over. Though the stone was over thirteen years old, it still looked new, like someone had been taking care of it all these years. She placed the bouquet of lilies in front of the stone and pulled one out, placing it on the area between the angels.

"I know I've never visited," she said as she sat down and stared at the stone with the names of her family members. "I've met some people recently. They aren't human, if you would believe that. Some of my closest friends are demons and angels. Chiho is in love with the king of demons. Of all people, she fell in love with King Satan. I don't think the feeling is mutual. You see, he's trying to take over the world by becoming the CEO of MgRonalds." She wiped a tear away, "He's just like you, Reiji. He's so goal oriented, nothing else really matters, but he cares about his friends and family. I would like to think you would be proud of who I've become, but I'm not much of anyone right now. Today, I told someone the truth about that night. He's actually the Demon general for Satan. After talking to Lucifer, my angel friend, I realized I could trust these guys with the truth. They would listen and not show any sort of pity. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I've had too much of it. I didn't want to see that...that look again." She sighed as she out her hand on the stone. "He's still out there, and I know he's coming for me. You don't need to worry about me, though. I have the king of demons and his two generals to take care of me. They've all been especially kind since my return from Europe."

She continued talking to the rock for hours, not really paying attention to her surroundings or the time. She told them about her life so far and her adventures in Europe. She tried her hardest not to cry as her shell began to crack. Ever so slowly, she started crying as she told all of them how much she missed them and what she missed about them. She missed her father's strength when he held her at night, and her mother's warmth when she hugged her. She missed Reiji the most, how he would protect her and make her laugh when she cried. She missed Yamato's giggles and helping learn how to walk. She missed them so much...

Lucifer stood a few feet away, leaning on an obelisk, his arms crossed over his chest. He had been behind her the whole time, watching as she laughed alone and sobbed alone. He didn't understand, but it was obvious the girl needed to do this. Jaden's jealousy had gotten the best of him, and he sent Lucifer home to keep him from working more hours. Ashiya had left a message about Kaminari wandering off alone somewhere, and Lucifer had seen her just as he walked out of the bus.

Topic after topic, Lucifer began to learn more about the strange girl who had set him free. Her life choices were based on her own mortality, choosing to be adventurous and less caring, because deep down, she didn't want to be alive at all. She missed her family to the point of wanting to be dead just be with them, but not having the nerve to do it, because she didn't want them to be disappointed in her.

He checked the clock on his phone. 10:30. They had been there for nearly five hours. He walked up to her and gently placed his hand on her shoulder. He quickly covered her mouth when she screamed. Her pale eyes seemed to glow in the pale moonlight, what little there was from the waning moon. The fear slowly melted away as she started to breathe more calmly.

"C'mon, it's late." He noticed the flowers at her feet then looked back at her, "Why did you bring those?"

"It's just what people do," she replied with a shrug. "Why?"

"Don't give dying gifts to the dead," he told her as he pulled another lily from the bouquet and stuck the stem in the ground. He placed his hands on the ground, a gentle purple glow coming from his hands.

He dusted his hands off as he stood up, "Your family will be worried. Let's get you home."

He slowly helped her to her feet, knowing her legs were probably asleep, which proved be true when she stumbled back to the ground and laughed. He smiled some as he watched her just stare at the sky, a smile on her face. "Have you ever seen Earth's stars?"

When he looked up, he noticed he couldn't see them at all. "Do you even have stars?"

"Yeah, but you can't see them in the city. The lights are too bright."

She finally got to her feet and stretched, "I didn't think I would feel better, but I do." Tears started to fill her eyes again as she put her hand on top of the tombstone. "It was almost like they were actually here to hear me." She wiped a tear away to try to keep herself from crying more. "I'm sorry. I've been a wreck since Bell's, I think."

"You haven't eaten, have you?" He questioned.

"Yeah," she lied. "I ate when I got home after Ashiya dropped me off."

"Good, you'll be fine with getting something else to eat, then," he replied as he turned to leave. Before he could take a step, Kaminari was suddenly at his side, glued to his arm, her entire body shaking. The genuine fear that was coming from her body made him want more, but he also wanted it to stop.

He glared at the man that stood in the shadows, far from them. He couldn't see details, but he knew from the corrupted, twisted joy the man radiated as he lusted for Kaminari's screams. It was the man that tortured her all those years ago. The one that caused her pain. The one that took every drop of happiness from her body. He destroyed her soul. And to Lucifer, that was unforgivable.


	5. Chapter 5

"I was wondering when you would come," the man said as he approached them.

Lucifer relaxed when Kaminari did. "Hey, Dad," she greeted.

"When you didn't come home, I thought you might have come here," he smiled at Lucifer. "Thank you for keeping an eye on my daughter." He put out his hand, "I'm Senichi Sasaki, Kami's father."

Lucifer skeptically shook the man's hand, "I'm Hanzo Urushihara, Maou's roommate."

Kaminari's father smiled at him before directing his attention back to his daughter, "Don't worry. Chiho doesn't know you're here. Try to keep an eye on the clock, though. You still have a curfew. I'll tell your mother that you're safe."

She hugged him, "Thanks, Dad. I'll be home soon." Once her father was in his car again, she waved him off, Lucifer standing awkwardly behind her. "Well, that's going to be hard to explain."

"C'mon," Lucifer said as he grabbed her wrist and tugged her along. "I know you haven't eaten, so don't bother arguing."

"How long were you there?" She asked as she fell in stride by him.

"The whole time," he replied truthfully.

She chuckled some, "Jaden sent you home?"

"Why do you know that?"

"That's just how Jaden is," Kaminari replied. "Have you thought about finding another job?"

"I'm going to have to," Lucifer replied. "Otherwise, I won't be working at all, but I can get so much magic there."

"Find a way to make yourself irreplaceable, and he won't be able to fire you," she told him.

"He hasn't realized the theatre won't be able to function without me," Lucifer replied.

Lucifer opened the door to a small corner restaurant that specialized in egg rolls and spring rolls. With a sharp tug, he got Kaminari inside before she walked into the door. "I'm fine," Kaminari insisted as she tried to step out of the restaurant. "Let's go home."

"You haven't eaten since breakfast, and you threw that up," he told her as he pulled her to a table in the corner. "You're going to eat something."

She sighed as she rubbed her eyes. They ached from crying. Once they were seated, she noticed three familiar faces trying to hide behind menus, and another far in the corner. Before she could make mention, Lucifer placed his hand on hers. "Whatever you tell them, I will agree with you. Tell them the truth when you're ready. Until then," he awkwardly lifted her hand to his lips before holding his hand between hers.

Her face was burning as he stared at her. Though it meant nothing, she couldn't understand why he would willingly go so far to cover up what she was dealing with. Finally, she managed a shaky smile, "You're a wonderful person."

Lucifer glanced again at Maou, Chiho, and Ashiya as they sat on the other side of the room. While Chiho fumed, Maou couldn't have been less interested while Ashiya was just confused by the whole thing. Even Emi was there, and that made things more annoying. He wasn't going to let them distract him from focusing on how to keep Kaminari from getting depressed again.

Lucifer smiled as he watched Kaminari munch on an egg roll that clearly tasted very weird. She scrunched her nose then handed it to him, "You try it."

His smile immediately faded when he looked inside the strange pork egg roll. There wasn't cabbage inside, but some other strange green goo with small crunchies in there. He took a skeptical bite and immediately put it to the side, unable to eat it. They tried different ones, chicken curry, veggies with rice, grape salad, strawberry shortcake, each one almost as bad as the last. By the end of their "date" neither of them wanted to eat an egg roll ever again.

Kaminari sighed when she saw the time on her phone, "Alright, it's almost midnight. Chiho and I need to get home."

Lucifer got up then walked to her side of the table, a smirk on his lips as he offered her his hand. She smiled as she took it, allowing him to pull her to her feet. He didn't let go of her hand as they left the restaurant. Knowing the others were behind them, he put his arm around her, pulling her closer to him as they walked. Every once in a while he would slow his pace, resting his head on hers.

When they got back to her home, she almost didn't want it to stop. She smiled at the kind Demon, "Thank you for today. You've been the best."

"Is that how dates end?" He asked. "I don't think that's how dates end."

She smiled slightly, though it never reached her eyes, "I don't need any sort of closure for the night. I'm tutoring Maou tomorrow, so I'll see you then." She hugged him, holding him tight to her. "Thank you for helping me."

Lucifer wrapped his arms around the girl and jumped into the air, his wings sending them up a little higher as Emi suddenly appeared. Lucifer glared down at the Hero while keeping the very scared Kaminari close to him.

"Coward! How dare you hide behind her!" Emi exclaimed while pointing her sword at the fallen angel.

"Are you insane? You could have killed her!" Lucifer argued as he held the slightly traumatized girl closer to him.

Her knuckles were turning white as she held onto Lucifer as tightly as she could. "Please don't drop me," she whispered as she stared down at Emi.

"Put that sword away so I can put her down," Lucifer demanded. "The longer she's up here, the more powerful I become."

"You can come down," Maou said as he approached the chaos. "She won't do anything."

Lucifer got lower to the ground, but never touched it as he placed Kaminari down. "You need to get over yourself," Lucifer told the Hero. "We're staying in this world, Emilia. We don't try to ruin your life, so stop ruining ours."

Before she could even scream, Lucifer had Kaminari at the top of the building she lived in. "I don't think I like flying," she muttered into Lucifer's chest.

"I can tell," he chuckled. "But," he moved some hair from her face, "I had fun. I wouldn't mind doing it again with fewer tears, yeah?"

She closed her eyes. All the concern was gone. She didn't care he would live beyond her. He was there, for now at least, though teenage romances rarely last.

"Yeah," she agreed quietly.

"Alright, it's time for me to go home. Jaden has me working all day since we have a midnight premiere tomorrow."

"Okay, thank you for taking care of me today." She rubbed her arm, as she looked at the ground. "I...I don't know if I would have made it without you."

"Hey, no more dark thoughts," he told her with a smile. "I'll see you soon."

He gave her a gentle kiss on her cheek, a spark of purple magic moving through her body. She felt warm, like he was still holding her. Her body tingled causing bumps to form on her arms.

He chuckled as she touched her cheek, "Goodnight, Kami."

"G'night, Lucifer," she replied dreamily.

When he jumped off, she walked to the edge, watching him fall until his wings appeared, letting him hover to the ground. What had he done to her? When she got back to the apartment, she managed to make it into her room without playing 20 questions with Chiho, or so she thought.

Chiho and Emi were sitting in her room, both furious beyond reason. "Just what happened on the roof?!" Emi asked, rage fueling the question.

"Nothing," Kaminari replied.

"That magic on your cheek says otherwise," Emi spat as she pointed at the spot where Lucifer had kissed her.

"You let Lucifer kiss you?!" Chiho screeched.

"You're going to wake Mom," Kaminari hissed, trying to calm the girl to a decent talking volume. "What's the magic going to do to me?"

"I don't know," Emi replied solemnly. "It might keep you safe. It might turn you into an angel, maybe a Demon. I've never heard of it."

"I'm not pregnant, am I?" Kaminari asked with fear.

"No, there's still only one way to do that," Emi laughed awkwardly. "I'll ask him tomorrow."

"No, please don't," Kaminari almost begged. "My ex works there, and he's trying to find any reason to fire him. Wait until he has another job before bothering him there, okay?"

Emi had seen the same look in Chiho's eyes many times. It was hard for her to comprehend it, but she understood the concern. The group of demons was becoming less of a pain every day. She hardly stalked them anymore now that they had a specific routine. The only reason she really stayed around was because of Chiho's constant concern over Maou never loving her. Whether or not that was true, wasn't her choice to decide or explain, but she still kept in contact to reassure the girl everything was fine and that Maou wouldn't be returning to Ente Isla.

Kaminari was less concerned over their return. She was more concerned over their happiness in this life.

Kaminari smiled some, "Emi, you need to move on from what happened in Ente Isla. Let me show you why."

Chiho and Emi watched as the girl turned on her laptop and switched to the Iishi user.

"Who is Iishi?" Emi asked.

"That was my name. Kaminari Iishi," Kaminari said as she pointed at the little girl who was in mid air. "That's me when I was four."

"Who are those people?" Emi asked.

"They're my family," Kaminari replied. "This was the last picture that was taken when they were alive."

"A-all of them died?"

Kaminari sighed as she clicked on the file labeled Bad Idea. She repeated her story as she clicked through the pictures, explaining exactly what happened to all of them. By the end of it, the two had been crying with her, sometimes asking her to stop, but she refused, continuing the story until the end.

She deleted the photos and looked at Emi, "Emi, humans did this. Have you heard of Maou torturing people like this? Or has he been mostly merciful by destroying everyone in the village, ultimately killing them all? Now, if you'll please leave, I need to go to bed. I open tomorrow."

Maou yawned as he opened the door, stepping out of the way for Emi to enter. She had called ahead saying she wanted to talk to him about something important. "If this is about Lucifer, I don't want to hear it."

"It's about me," she replied quietly. She sighed shakily, "I'm going to be more civil with you."

"You talked with Kaminari, didn't you?" Ashiya asked. "Did she show you the scars?"

"No," Emi replied. "But, I realized the humans of this world are more evil than the demons from ours. What they did to her family..."

"Yeah, Lucifer showed us the pictures," Maou told her. "I accept your truce. In this world, we will protect the humans. They obviously can't fend for themselves against themselves."

"Okay, I have a question. What would happen if you...kissed someone?" Emi asked him.

He narrowed his eyes, "Why?"

"Lucifer kissed Kaminari," Emi replied. "Is she going to die?"

"Where did he kiss her?" Maou asked.

"I could see the magic on her cheek, so I think that's the only place."

"Are you sure it was magic and not celestial?"

"Sire, he wouldn't do something so brash," Ashiya commented.

"I'm certain it was magic," she replied as she looked at Ashiya. "What are you talking about?"

"An angel's kiss can do many things," Maou said. "I'm surprised the church didn't tell you."

"Get to the point," Emi growled.

"Well, a celestial force kiss can do many things to a human. Depending on the source, it might be able to turn a human into an angel. Though, it could do other things as well. It can show other angels that the human is protected by another angel, it can keep demons from approaching them, but there's also a darker side where it could take the life of the human to give an angel more power, or simply mark a target for other angels to destroy later on."

"Do you really think Lucifer would turn her into an angel?" Emi asked.

"He has the power and the authority if any lesser angel ever questioned it," Maou replied. "But, since it was magic, there are similar things. He could be trying to turn her into a Demon, though that's not likely. She would turn into one of the lesser demons that are mindless and can't be controlled. No one wants that. It could be a warning for people to leave her alone. A demon's kiss is much darker than an angel's kiss simply by the fact it can be noticed by humans, or they can sense the energy coming from the kiss, which is probably what Lucifer did."

"So, no one will mess with her anymore?" Emi asked with a smile. "I didn't think he could actually have good ideas."

"What are you talking about?" Maou asked.

"They didn't arrest everyone involved in what happened to her. The man that tortured her is still out there. He said he was going to come after her again. If she's been kissed by him, then he won't bother her."

"Well, he might want to choose somewhere else to kiss her then, because I don't know how long it will last," Maou said.

"The spell can wear off?" Emi asked.

"Well, yeah," Maou replied. "If he had actually kissed her, chances are she would never be in another relationship. She's not even a relationship right now."

"They're not dating?"

"He didn't say they were."

"She didn't say they weren't," Emi said with a smirk. It immediately disappeared, "How did he manage to get a girlfriend before I even got a boyfriend?!"

"Well, if you didn't stalk me, you probably would have gotten a boyfriend."

Emi sighed, "Well, I've got work."

Kaminari stretched as she waited for the park to open. Even after Emi left, Chiho wouldn't let it go until she finally told her what had happened that day. She changed her visit to the graveyard to just roaming the city, which Kaminari was known to do when she got upset. She had to be at work by 7:00 and she didn't go to bed until 3:45.

She had never been more grateful to Lucifer than she had been as she drank some coffee from her travel mug. Brazilian coffee had been a thing Kaminari had tried once while in Portugal, and she thought the delicious caffeine bean would be gone from her life forever, but to her luck, Maou's strange landlady passed it to them. People that worked around the park started dropping by for their morning cup of coffee and biscuit to help them start off their day. Slowly the breakfast crowd began to disappear as customers of the park began to flood in. Customers would be far and few between making it hard to keep the staff busy, but Kaminari was a decent shift manager, taking time during the down time to give helpful tips to those working on how to do their job better.

The place seemed to flood when lunch came. Even with the two registers open, she struggled to keep up with the growing crowd and making sure her delivery employees were able to go where they were needed. Things were suddenly stopped when a register broke, so she had another employee packing bags to hand out to customers.

Many complaints and screams later, the rush had ended. Despite her polite professionalism, a woman threw icy water on her, almost damaging the only working register. While the crowds were down, she started messing with the broken register while another employee handled the register.

She sighed as she took off her MgRonalds polo revealing a MgRonalds long sleeved shirt that was worn mostly in the winter, but she wore year-round. She draped her shirt over a chair outside and went back to working on the register.

"I'm sorry sir, but this register is closed until further notice," Kaminari said, not giving the man any sort of actual notice.

"Do you normally strip at work? You're more than welcome to work for me."

She sighed as she smacked the register on the side, "Sir, if you're not going to buy anything, I must ask you to leave."

She held down the power button of the register and noticed it wasn't reacting at all. She followed the power cord and groaned. They would be running on one register until she got permission from corporate to open the counter. The troublesome man grabbed her wrist which immediately set her skin on fire forcing the man to let her go.

"Where's the manager?!"

"Sir, I'm the manager until 3:00. If you wish to file a formal complaint, I can pull the paperwork for you."

"I'll be back," he spat and stormed off.

She absentmindedly rubbed her wrist before placing her hand on her cheek. What sort of magic had Lucifer used on her?

With a shudder, she went back to working the only functioning register while sending the other employees out on their business. When 3:00 rolled around, Tai walked in with the man from earlier.

"This man said you attacked him, Kaminari," Tai said with a frown.

"I'll go pull up the security footage," she replied with a sigh.

Tai followed her to the back where she pulled up the video. She was working on the register, the man grabbed her, then immediately let go.

"Alright," Tai said with a sigh. "Why haven't you fixed the register yet?"

"Because I haven't had time to call corporate to ask permission to take the counter apart," she replied.

Tai immediately groaned, "It got unplugged?"

"I've tried everything else," she replied. "All we can do is wait."

"Alright, go home," he told her.

She grabbed her dried out polo and hung it up in her locker as well as her long sleeved MgRonalds shirt. She straightened out her tank top then pulled her long sleeved black shirt she had worn to work that day. After adjusting her messenger bag to a comfortable position, she left the place, happy to be gone.

She couldn't remember the last time she had had such a hard time. Whatever happened with that man was bothering her, as well. Was that the magic behind Lucifer's kiss?

After accidentally bumping into some people and realizing they weren't getting burned like the man, she started to think it was for anyone that wanted to harm her in any way. She smiled slightly as she touched where he had kissed her. That was sweet of him to think of her in such a way.

When she got home, Chiho was practically dancing around the living room. "What are you so excited about?"

"I'm going to the movies with Mr. Maou!"

"Wait, when?"

"We're going to the midnight premiere at Jaden's theatre. We prepaid for the tickets so he can't up the charge at the window."

"Alright," she said as she grabbed her backpack, "I'm heading over there to start tutoring him. You spend the next nine hours getting ready."

Chiho giggled and squealed as she spun around again. "You would be the same way if Urushihara asked you out."

Kaminari smiled slightly as she touched her cheek again, "Maybe."

She left the apartment, heading toward the bus stop that would take her to Maou's. She rocked on her heels as she waited. When it finally showed up, Ashiya started to step off, but stopped when he saw Kaminari waiting.

"What's up?" Kaminari asked as the two took a seat in the front.

"We were wondering where you were," he told her. "You were supposed to be at the apartment an hour ago."

"I didn't get off until 3:00. I'm sorry."

"It's quite alright," he muttered under his breath, still agitated. "What will you be teaching him?"

"I thought I would start off with something interesting, so he's taking history today."

"That hardly sounds interesting," Ashiya muttered.

"Don't you want to know if magic exists in this world or not?" She asked him with a smile. "I know it's not the goal anymore, but having magic in case Ente Isla decides to come back would be nice."

"If that's the case, then I will participate in this class as well."

Kaminari pulled out the history book she was planning on using. Ashiya stared in horror at the monstrous book, "You cannot expect him to learn all of that!"

"If I can, he can," she told him as she put it back. "And that's only everything before the 1400s. The other book wouldn't fit."

When the two got off the bus, Kaminari frowned at the stairs. She didn't want to carry that heavy book all the way to the second floor, but she had to. With a sigh, she followed the Demon general up the stairs and into the apartment. "Sire, Kaminari is here."

"What sort of teacher shows up-"

He groaned when the heavy backpack landed on his stomach. "One that works at the amusement park MgRonalds and doesn't get off until 3:00. Also a very generous one that is willing to teach the great and mighty Satan without charging a fee." She sat by him as he pulled the large book out. "This class is going to be a test run to see the best way you learn."

"Repetition," he told her with a smile.

"Wrong answer," she told him as she moved to Lucifer's laptop and brought it to the table. "This is actually learning things, not how to do them. Repetition is for math, not history."

She sat by him and started off with the book, pulling up various pictures on the internet to see if seeing the things would help. He took notes as well, so they were off to a good start as far as history went. Maou steadily grew more bored with the subject, but occasionally would hear something interesting and want to know more about that subject. After three hours, Kaminari called it quits.

"Wait, why are we stopping?" Maou asked.

"Because you have a date with Chi in a few hours, and I only brought history with me. Something weird happened at work and I can't focus."

"What happened?"

"This guy grabbed me, and he got a weird burn on his hand from touching me."

"That's good," Maou replied. "We thought Lucifer had placed a serious spell on you."

"What would you consider serious?"

"Well, he didn't die," Maou said with a smile. "I would remove the spell, but that's up to Lucifer. You let it happen." He smiled, "He thinks dates are stupid."

"Like the one you have with Chi?" She smirked. "Dates for the sole purpose of a romantic relationship are doomed to fail. There has to be a friendship there first, or someone will get hurt."

"I've been here long enough to know friends don't kiss each other," Maou argued.

"I don't think Lucifer and I will become a thing," she told him. "If it's a spell of protection, that's fine. I guess it's a one time thing, and I'm alright with that."

"Why cant Chiho be as calm as you are about these things?" Ashiya groaned. "She can become such a nightmare."

Kaminari's phone buzzed. She raised an eyebrow, "Hey Urushihara."

"Are you coming to the premiere tonight?"

"I wasn't planning on it, why?"

"Well, Jaden's father came by and he's letting everyone watch the movie."

"Yeah, I'll come."

"I'll, uh, see you then."

Kaminari sighed, "Well, Ashiya, are you coming to the movie?"

"I don't like theaters," he replied.

"You're coming?" Maou asked.

"Yeah, Lucifer just invited me. The employees are getting to see the movie, too. You should come. I heard it's scary."

"No, it's quite alright," Ashiya's said with a smile. "If I go, I will be in someone's company and either Lucifer or Chiho will be upset."

"Whatever," she said with a shrug. "I'm going home and I'm going to sleep for the next four hours."

She left the house, a little happier than she thought she needed to be. She shook her head at how idiotic she felt. She was all giddy because she had been asked to the movies by a guy not long ago she never wanted to see again. As she got on the bus, she started thinking about what she should wear, which made her frown. She didn't want to try to impress him. She just wanted to be next to him, enjoy his company, just be happy for a little while. On the surface, that seemed like a small request for the evening, but she knew it would turn out much worse.

She yawned as she stepped in her home. The moment she saw Chiho, she lifted her hand, "I'm taking a shower and taking a nap. I'll be ready on time."

Kaminari threw her backpack to the wall, and headed to the bathroom to get a quick shower before her nap. She woke up to Chiho banging on the door, "Kami, its 10:30!"

Knowing she wouldn't be going back to sleep, Kaminari wandered to her closet and pulled some stuff from the hangers then tossed it onto her bed. After getting dressed, she headed to the bathroom and stared at the contacts holder on the sink. She knew her sister would blow it way out of proportion, but to watch movies, she needed her contacts.

When she stepped out of her room, her sister squeaked, "You look so cute! I've never seen your makeup look better!"

Kaminari rolled her eyes, "Just because I wear glasses doesn't mean I don't wear makeup."

The two girls bid their parents goodnight and headed out the door. Chiho was practically shaking with excitement as Maou walked up. He wasn't dressed in his normal attire, but was wearing some nice jeans, that could have been considered new, and a black shirt under a black jacket.

"Someone cleans up nice," Kaminari commented as she circled Maou.

"Lucifer won't know how to react when he sees you," Maou commented.

"Look, I can't watch movies with my glasses," she explained, annoyed with the situation.

"Sure," Maou replied with a smirk. "Cmon, we're going to be late."


	6. Chapter 6

"How are you supposed to get in if you don't have a ticket?" Maou asked Kaminari while she picked at a hang nail.

"I guess he's told Jaden," she replied with a shrug as she started chewing on the annoying bit.

Chiho huffed as she pulled her sister's hand from her mouth, "Kami, you can't chew your nails! It's not cute!"

"I'm not here to be cute," Kaminari replied indignantly. "I'm here to watch a movie."

"I wonder if Urushihara will see it the same way," Maou commented off-handedly. "Anyway, it's a good thing you wore contacts. It looks like it might be 3D."

"We have tickets for 2D," Chiho replied as she looked at the ticket. "Everything is here. We're where we need to be."

"No, we need to be inside," Kaminari grumbled as she picked at the hang nail again.

"Kami, stop!" Chiho huffed as she smacked her sister's hands. "You're going to bleed everywhere."

The line moved a few feet before it stopped again. This continued for a while until the three arrived at the door where the man was taking tickets. On occasion, he would put his finger to his ear for the headpiece then write something down on a clipboard in front of him.

He took the tickets from Chiho then stared at Kaminari, hand out as he waited. She gave an awkward smile, "I'm here with Urushihara? Kaminari Sasaki?"

The guy sighed then pulled out a walking-talkie, paging Urushihara.

"What is it?" Urushihara replied clearly annoyed, his voice slightly covered with static.

"Did you invite someone?"

"Yeah, Kaminari Sasaki," he replied, the annoyance free from his voice.

The guy flipped some pages on his notepad and scratched something off the list before letting her in. She was slightly pissed when she looked around and couldn't find Maou or Chiho. Her sister would honestly do anything to be alone with that Demon.

The crowd was overwhelming, people of all heights and smells surrounding her as well as the smell of stale buttered popcorn and soda. Teenage boys of all scents had practically bathed themselves in cologne and it was giving her a headache. The large lobby was still too small for the large crowd making the noise worse. She was frozen in the sea of people, unable to even find the way back out just so she could breathe.

She squeaked when someone grabbed her wrist. Her attention went to Maou as he pulled her away from the chaos to the wall. "I forgot how small you are. We found a place that has enough seats for the four of us."

"You know Chi isn't going to save those two seats, right?" She asked him as she held onto his arm while he pushed through the crowd.

"Don't worry," he replied with a sly smile. "I told her it was a double date."

"And that worked?"

"Well, yeah, as long as I sit by Urushihara, she's going to be okay."

What a ridiculous person, Kaminari mused. "How is Urushihara going to find us?"

"I'm sure he'll find a way," Maou replied with a wink.

She held onto him as they walked up the stairs in the dark room. With it being one of the last rooms, and the employees not paying attention, Maou and Chiho had managed to get into one of the empty theaters which most of the 2D were. Though Kaminari preferred the center somewhere, Chiho had seats at the very back. At least no one would be kicking her in the back or shoving their feet on her head. It didn't smell so bad in there either. It almost smelled clean.

Only a few minutes passed before people started piling into the room. Kaminari made sure to keep a seat between her and Maou for Lucifer to sit, something that greatly annoyed her. However, she kept her bag in the vacant seat and waited.

"Hey, can you move over one?"

Kaminari blinked a few times, not even realizing she fell asleep. "I can't, it's for my friend."

The girl huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, "How rude. People like you don't deserve to reserve spots when the theatre is going to be packed."

"It's a theater, not a baseball stadium. Next time, get here early and you won't have this problem."

"Kami, be nice!" Chiho scolded while Maou gawked at the usually kind hearted girl.

Her pale eyes glared up at the imposing girl, "Go find someone else to stand over. I don't have time for nonsense like you."

Kaminari rubbed her temples while Chiho apologized to the girl for her sister's rudeness. She yawned, barely able to stay awake. If the movie was as scary as it was told to be, she probably wouldn't fall asleep, but she was exhausted after such little sleep and the long day at work.

Something cold and wet touched her face immediately waking her up once again. Lucifer smiled down at her as he handed her a drink, "Wake up or you'll miss the movie." His smile instantly disappeared, "Oh, I am so sorry. I thought you were someone else."

"What are you talking about?" She asked as she took a sip of the soda he brought her.

"Kami?"

"Yeah, it's me," she replied as she yawned again, moving her bag from the seat. "I might not make it through this."

"I could tell you had a long day," he told her. "You didn't have to come."

"It takes at least two people to embarrass Chiho to a point of satisfaction," she told him with a tired smile. "Im sorry if I'm not a bucket of fun tonight."

"If you need to sleep, you can," he told her. "It's not as good as people say."

"You're a demon. Your opinion on horror doesn't count."

"Hey, that's not nice," Maou spoke up. "We're not as scary as we used to be."

"You're not scary at all," Chiho said with a smile. "If you take over the world, you need to be approachable."

"Better to be feared than loved," Kaminari muttered as she looked at her hand, barely able to see the hang nail. "Chi, do you have a bandaid?"

The girl hummed thoughtfully for a moment before rummaging through her bag. "Nope, sorry."

"Why do you need a bandaid?" Lucifer asked.

"I have a hang nail," she muttered.

The lights started to dim, signaling the start of the movie. With the cold soda and fresh source of caffeine, Kaminari was ready to take on whatever the movie could throw at her. She also felt the room get colder. Despite the long sleeved shirt she was wearing and the warmth Lucifer and the girl next to her were giving off, she was still cold. She had to put her drink down and pull her knees to her chest to keep warm.

"What is it?" Lucifer asked her as the crowd of people in front of him seemed to shift. The two watched as everyone seemed to move closer together, a sea of arms moving to be put around someone. "That's clever."

Kaminari yawned, "It's making me sleepy."

He poked her in the arm, "Wake up."

She glared at him, "Don't start."

He smiled, "Don't fall asleep.

With a weak huff, Kaminari turned her attention back to the large screen, waiting for the previews to stop and movie to start. Many animated movies, horror movies, and love stories later, the horror fest began, immediately starting the movie off with a jump scare.

Something weird caught Kaminari's attention. There was a strange black smoke hovering above everyone she immediately started tapping and shaking Lucifer, fear settling in, almost to the point of tears.

"What is it?" Lucifer asked as he grabbed her hands to keep her from bothering him more. His gaze followed hers as she stared at the impending doom that hovered over them.

Her heart started pounding when he didn't answer her. His attention had moved to Maou, so it wasn't anything good. Lucifer suddenly stood up, Maou standing as well. "Stay here," Lucifer told her.

Chiho moved to her side, her eyes staring at the ceiling as well. "Mr. Maou said no one else can see it."

"What does that mean?" Kaminari whispered, clearly terrified.

"It's from Ente Isla," she answered, more calm than her sister.

Kaminari swallowed hard as the darkness started to swirl. "Why is it moving?"

"It might be the Gate," Chiho answered. "They don't really have much control over where it opens."

Kaminari stared at her ever so calm sister. It was usually the other way around, Chiho becoming hysteric while Kaminari remained calm. The smoke started to drop a tunnel, like a small tornado that made no wind. Fear slammed into Kaminari harder than the tunnel had hit her. The darkness consumed her as she reached for her sister, her fingers barely brushing her hand.

She woke up to the sun shining in her face and a calm breeze blowing over her. She sat up in a field of flowers, no sign of civilization in any direction. She slowly pushed herself to her feet and dusted herself off ridding what little dirt and grass had gotten on her. The air felt lighter here, cleaner as well. Far off, she could see mountains capped with snow. Though she prayed she was somehow in the country side of Japan, she knew where she was. She was in Ente Isla, and there was no way for her to return.

She didn't feel so tired anymore. Had she been asleep for a long time? As she looked around, she tried to determine which way was north, a feat proving difficult since she had no idea what side the sun would set on in this world. She decided to follow the sun. Perhaps it was the west, or it was still early and coming up from the east. Either way, she needed to get out of the flowers.

Somehow, this world had a more comfortable temperature. She wasn't too hot or too cold. The sun was warm enough to keep her from freezing due to the cool breeze. Now that she thought about it, it was very...beachy. If that was the case, she would end up on the beach eventually and maybe find a fisherman's village there.

As the sun began to set, Kaminari found a city of stone. Tall steeples and large colorful windows glittered in the dying sunlight. She remembered the churches she had seen in Europe and was terrified that she had found the ones in Ente Isla. Before she could get out of sight from the nearest guard, an alarm was sounded. She watched in terror as fully armored guards came from every angle, surrounding her, swords and spears pointed at her ready to execute her.

As the armored men whispered amongst themselves, others approached. A loud voice echoed over them, apparently ordering the men to put down their weapons, because swords were sheathed and spears were put away. The men parted like a sea as a man on a horse walked through, his brown eyes glaring down at her. He spoke to her, his gaze never changing. Anger took over the man's face, and he slapped her to the ground, jumping off his horse and slamming his foot on her neck to keep her down.

She heard him say something about Satan as he rambled. Her hand began to glow purple, and her body became cold. A light purple wisp floated out of her skin. Lucifer's Magic had been taken from her. She realized then how cold the world actually was and how dismal it had become. For the first time in many years she felt truly alone.

Ropes were wrapped around her arms and she was tugged into the giant church. She was taken to a strange chamber, a large room where many men had been gathered and were staring down at her, judgment in their eyes as well as hatred. At a command, one of the knights came to her and ripped her clothing away, leaving her naked in the middle of the room.

Gasps and whispers echoed in the stony room as they each saw her scars and pain. The men spoke amongst themselves, clearly not ashamed of letting her hear whatever they had to say. Even though she couldn't understand, Lucifer's name came up more than she wanted to hear it as well as Satan and Alciel. One man spoke up above the rest with a laugh following his statement. All of the men laughed as well. They were mocking her, that much she knew.

When another voice spoke up, it was low and cold. All of the men went silent as they watched an older man with grey eyes step up to her. He walked around her, looking her up and down, smirking as he examined her. He snapped his fingers and a knight approached her, grabbing her wrist while a few more brought in what looked like a cross.

The realization of it all brought baggage to Kaminari's soul as the knight took her to the cross, shoving a knife into each of her wrists and ankles. The cross was never raised as the familiar painful strokes and stabs of another blade moved across her arms, even her torso and legs were slashed this time. She rounded in darkness, men's faces blurring into tears as each had their way.

Just when she had accepted death, something seared into the crook of her neck while her mind focused on the burn that felt like it had reached bone, the knives were pulled from her and she was given clothes. She stared at the insulting shade of orange. The clothes of a harlot. Despite the symbolism, she put them on and walked out of the church. The priests lined the way throwing salt at her, as if to purify her from whatever they thought she had done.

At the end of the line was the first priest who placed his hand on her head which she immediately slapped away, blood flying with the gesture. "Satan will return, and when he does, Lucifer and Alciel will be with him. They will kill you for this."

She pushed by him, drops of blood following her as they dropped from her arms and legs. She wanted to go back to that field of flowers. She wondered if there ever had been a field of flowers. There was a fountain in the center of the courtyard which Kaminari approached and drank from. The blessed water healed her wounds but left more scars as she drank, readying her for her venture out of the wretched place they called holy.

She headed out of the courtyard and found a small city waiting, the morning sun starting to light up the area. She followed the main road, ignoring the shocked gaze from women around that were covering the eyes of their children while men whispered amongst themselves. The church had given her the life of a harlot, but she was not going to live by that standard or expectation. She was leaving, and she would find a new place to stay.

Her attention moved to a tall building where a man had walked out with some books in his arm. She walked in, not bothering to look at anyone who watched her and followed the bookshelves. She had found the library. She grabbed as many books as she could hold and found a vacant table. Every language had a dictionary, so she would learn a Ente Islan with the books and dictionaries of this world.

Every night she turned down offers, every day she returned to the library to learn more. Her tireless effort kept on for almost two weeks, her only sustenance being water from the fountain in the courtyard of the church.

As she mastered the language, she mastered the culture. Having sex with the head priest was almost like being granted your virginity again. However, that was only true for a mere harlot. Having been raped by more than one priest, she had been considered a demon's whore and needed to be thoroughly cleansed by the entire brotherhood, which was what the black branded cross on her neck signified. She would never be more than a harlot.

As she read on about the strange things of this world, it seemed there was more than just magic at work. There was another magic called celestial force, a holy magic. Members of the church and angels possessed this magic. Unlike magic that the demons used, celestial force could only be gained gradually through meditation.

She stumbled upon another book about angels and how they dealt with humans. Angels could fall in love with humans, but if they wished to stay with the human, they would have to give up their celestial force and shorten their life. From some of the stories, the angels could be more ruthless than the demons. The few records about Lucifer verified the power he had when he was an angel in Heaven. If he hadn't left, she had no doubt he would be able to kill Maou.

She sighed as she closed the fifth book she had read that day. She knew enough to get by and knew enough to be able to get somewhere in the life she was forced to have. Without a word, she left the library, never to return.

She had seen a map of Ente Isla, and almost fifty miles from the church was a small village, one where she hoped she could start over. People watched her, getting out of her way as she headed out of the large city. She had never been vengeful before, but these people were going to know the true power of a human. She was going to destroy that church and everyone in it.

One of the books she had read was a report of the testing of magic. What had happened to her was called summoning. Someone in Ente Isla had something of hers and had used it to bring her to this world. Also, a sheep, three goats, two cows, and a child had to be sacrificed as well. There had been room in her heart to forgive them, but when she read about the child sacrifice, her ability to love, forgive, or be happy at all had instantly been destroyed.

She had to keep herself in check, or the magic of this world would consume her. If that happened, she would become a Demon, a bloodthirsty, merciless Demon like the monsters that had done this in the first place.

As she followed the long roads, she could tell she was getting weaker without food. She was thankful the city had been built right by a forest and river or she wouldn't have had any way to get food at all, not that there was much chance of her getting it now.

After grabbing a rock and a stick, she managed to make a spear and went to the river to try and catch fish. She tried for hours stabbing the water, and almost stabbing herself in the foot. When she finally caught a fish, she was proud at how big it was but quickly realized she had no idea what to do with it.

It took her a while to start a fire, but when it did start, she immediately started cooking the fish, hoping that she would be able to do it right. Though, she was almost certain it didn't need to be cooked, she wasn't going to risk it.

Night had taken over the sky when she dubbed her fish cooked. Being careful to not burn herself, she had to eat the fish, spitting scales and bone out since she didn't have the means to remove them.

Her eyes focused on the fire, her mind wandering back to Japan and how her sister was. If they had all that power, why couldn't they open the Gate? She closed her eyes as she laid down. They didn't need to return for her. It would probably start another war.

Loud screeching of birds woke her. The dim light of the distant morning sun barely lit the area around her, but she knew she hadn't moved. The fire had gone out at some point, yet she had managed to stay warm enough through the night. She got to her feet and stretched. The forest was better than the disgusting city any day.

Grabbing her spear, she followed the stream hoping it would take her to the village she had seen on the map. With the main road not being so far away, the river should take her there, but she wasn't certain. Her emotions were driving her insane. Sometimes, her anger would be so terrible, she wished all of Ente Isla to burn for what had happened to her. Her anger would quickly turn to a concentrated malice directed at the church. Depression would soon follow when her homesickness started to show. It would all end in a dismal acceptance that she would never go home. Returning to Ente Isla was out of the question. With no connections to anyone, there was no way for her to find someone that would open a Gate to take her home. She was there to stay.

She didn't really notice when she arrived at the village until she stopped an old woman from falling. The old woman thanked her with a forgiving smile, accepting Kaminari for who she appeared to be. "It's late, dear. Come inside and take the night off."

"Thank you," Kaminari said with a small smile.

"I'm Gretchen. What's your name?"

"Gray," she replied easily. It was an older name she had pulled from the many books she read, but one that females seemed to use.

Gretchen sighed as she placed some tea in front of Kaminari. "You don't look like a harlot."

Kaminari awkwardly tapped the sides of the ceramic cup, "I...was a devil's concubine."

"You poor child," she frowned. "How old are you?"

"Twenty," Kaminari lied.

"Well, you look like you're strong enough. Stay here for a while. I'm getting old, and I don't have anyone to help me anymore. The people of this village are very forgiving. They will accept you."

"Being accepted isn't a problem," Kaminari replied. "Not being judged is the only request I can ask."

Gretchen chuckled, "There is little difference here. Although the church does send priests every so often, it hasn't happened since the war ended. I am surprised they released you. A devil's concubine is never to leave the church. Not without being sterilized first."

"S-sterilized?" Kaminari whispered as she fought back tears.

"They have to make sure you aren't with child, dear," Gretchen replied immediately making Kaminari sick. What if she had been impregnated? She was only seventeen, and since child sacrifices were a thing in this world, she couldn't leave it here. She wasn't ready to be a mother, either.

Her mind was swimming with questions that couldn't be answered. She just wanted to go home, back to Japan and live a simple human life with simple human drama. She wanted to listen to Chiho fret over Maou. She wanted to hear Maou talk about how he was going to take over MgRonalds. She wanted to listen to Ashiya hum while he cooked or get onto Lucifer when the Demon was being useless. She wanted to be in Lucifer's arms again, no matter how high off the ground it had to be. All of these things she had taken for granted. She was ready to vow to never fight with Chiho again if it got her home, but she knew that wasn't true.

And, to top all of it off, Gretchen was just treating it like it was a normal occurrence. The old woman simply smiled, "Don't worry. You should feel honored. To have a priest's child is one of the highest praises anyone could receive." Her smile faded, "Since you are a devil's concubine, every child you have will have to be killed, even if it is a priest's son."

Kaminari sat in silence, letting the information sink in. At some point, Gretchen had gone to bed leaving Kaminari to be alone in the darkness with a single candle for light. Tears started to stream down her cheeks as she buried her face in her hands, "Where are you? Please...I want to come home."

Her heart dropped to the floor as a sourceless wind blew through the room, blowing out the candle. A purple ember on the wick started to flicker until a flame was finally glowing. It floated off the candle moving to her face and brushing her cheek where Lucifer had kissed her. Her body felt warm again, and she didn't feel so alone. Purple fire left her finger tip as she reached for the candle again. When it touched the candle, the burning orange returned, but it seemed brighter now.

He was coming. She was willing to bet he wasn't returning alone. For a small moment, she felt some sympathy for the church and what the demons would do to those men, but the thought of the children erased that emotion. Those men didn't deserve to live. Or they did, but they deserved to suffer like she did. Whatever pain they had to endure would never be enough to satisfy Kaminari's anger, and their deaths certainly wouldn't do.

No, there was hell to pay. She was going to make sure of it.

In the morning, Kaminari helped Gretchen with whatever she asked. Cleaning, cooking, tending to the chickens, and other small tasks that she had to learn since she never really did any of that before. She had only seen live chickens in Europe, but even then she wasn't asked to take care of them. It didn't bother her.

Around noon, she helped Gretchen do what she did for the community which was patch clothing. The old woman had to take time with Kaminari to make sure she handled the odd needle well and how to keep her from pricking her finger too many times. The teen caught on easily enough, but the clients weren't allowed to know she had helped. Though the village was accepting, they still considered harlots to be disgusting and didn't want them around their things, much less fixing them.

So, when people of the village started to get their clothes back that afternoon, Kaminari was kept hidden away so the villagers wouldn't know about her, not yet at least. When the evening came, she repeated the morning process of cleaning, cooking, and tending the chickens. That night, she sat in front of the candle and just stare at the flame, hoping it would turn purple again just so she could feel him. The warmth never faded, and she was happier knowing he was coming for her, but that didn't get rid of the temporary loneliness she felt.

When morning came, Kaminari began cleaning the kitchen once again. Gretchen had woken up before her and was sewing something, so she didn't bother the old woman with asking what to do. Once she finished cleaning, she went out to the chickens to gather eggs and headed back inside to start breakfast.

"There," Gretchen sighed as she stood up. Kaminari raised an eyebrow at the strange fabric piece in the old woman's arms. It was a very boring grey dress, but it wasn't orange. The black brand would still show, but it would be mostly covered up by the straps of the dress. "Put this on so you can go outside and look decent for once."

Obeying the old woman's demands, Kaminari quickly changed into the dress, happy to be free of the wretched color. She opened the door just in time to keep someone from knocking. The young man blushed as he stared down at her, "I-I'm sorry, but I'm here to get my father's pants."

"Hello, Keegan," Gretchen greeted as she approached the door. "Yes, I'll be right back."

Kaminari stepped to the side, allowing the young man in. She gave an awkward smile as he continued to glance and blush. "There, all fixed up," Gretchen said as she handed the boy the pants. "Keegan, this is Gray. She's going to be staying with me for a while."

Kaminari gave an awkward wave while the boy just blushed and gave a polite nod before leaving. Gretchen smiled while shaking her head, "He's never really been able to talk to girls. This village is so small, there's not much that can be done when there aren't any girls your age."

"I see," Kaminari commented. "He'll get his confidence eventually. Once he meets a girl he's ready to overcome his fears for, he'll be talking to every girl he sees just to get to know her." She sighed as she rubbed her scarred arms, "I would imagine this didn't help either."

"He'll be fine," Gretchen assured. "Once everyone gets past your appearance, you'll fit right in."

Kaminari sat in silence as she helped Gretchen patch clothes. Gretchen had gone over a list of things Kaminari needed to get for her in the market and who she could since some people didn't have to get their clothes fixed, they could just new ones. She had a little money, though it wasn't enough to really please the people around. Kaminari couldn't understand the way business worked around there. Money kept things clean cut without the favors. Maybe they just didn't like whatever money they used.

Around 3:00, Kaminari left the small cabin for the village. She had to ask people for directions to the places Gretchen told her to go, though many of the women glared at her when they saw the black mark. When Kaminari got to the places she needed to go, the people were reluctant to help her, even though she was working for Gretchen. Never in a million years did Kaminari think she would be considered almost unapproachable due to a mark on the crook of her neck. Then again, she would have never guessed any of this would happen to her.

As she gathered vegetables, fruits, meats, and other small things from people in the city, she could feel the eyes of men trying to guess what was beneath her clothes while women glared at her, the harlot that was taking men's attentions away from them. That's all she would be to these people, and that was okay as long as she didn't hold it against Gretchen. She didn't want to have to add a village to the demise of the church.

When she returned to the small home, she dropped everything at the door and rushed in. The place had been torn apart.

"Gretchen!" She called as she shifted things away so she could there was no answer, panic started to sink in. Had the woman died in the robbery?

"Lu...ci...fer..." a raspy voice growled behind her. She slowly turned to face a man-like beast blocking the doorway. The creature reminded her of a satyr, but had the lower half of a bear and teeth like one as well. It's white eyes stared at her' unmoving and angry. "Lu...ci...fer..." it growled again.

"He isn't here," Kaminari told the creature. "Leave, or he will come and end your life."

The creature made a strange hiss and jumped out of her line of sight. She walked out to see the creature flying with bat wings, heading to an unknown destination. Wherever it was going, she knew it would return. She hoped Lucifer would be there when it did. She needed him to be there when it did.


	7. Chapter 7

No one spoke as they let the reality of Kaminari being gone settle into their minds and hearts. Chiho had been beyond hysterics, blaming all of the demons for doing this to her. Once she calmed down, she apologized and kept quiet. Even Emi and Suzuno had come over to try to figure out what had happened. Emi had called her friends in Ente Isla and they were waiting for more information.

"Do we know the time difference?" Maou asked.

"It's roughly three days there is one day here," Suzuno replied. She sighed, "If the church summoned her, she's better off dead."

The statement caught Lucifer's attention, "What are they doing to her?"

Suzuno simply shook her head, "I'm afraid I can't say in front of Good Chiho," the assassin replied which caused Chiho to start crying again.

The only reason they were certain she was in a Ente Isla was because Lucifer had managed to find her. His strange trick of using fire across dimensions and using what was similar to the sonar blasts by focusing on someone thinking about Earth had helped him find her rather quickly. When he touched her, all the fear, hate, anger, and self-loathing shame moved through the flame to him. But, for the time being, she at least felt some safety.

No one breathed when Emi's phone rang. "What did you find?"

"She ran away from the church," Esmeralda replied. "She's been labeled a devil's concubine."

Emi covered her mouth with her hand, "Have they-"

"Yes," Esmeralda replied dismally.

"Is she?" Emi whispered, praying that the poor girl wasn't pregnant from the heinous act.

"No," Esmeralda replied. A relieved sigh assed through Emi's lips. "Emilia, this girl was summoned."

Emi's jade eyes moved to Lucifer who was sitting quietly staring at the floor. "Is there any way to break the spell?"

"If we find her, we can take her to the Devil's Castle. Celestial force isn't as strong there."

"She can't be far from the church, can she? Lucifer gave her some of his magic, so you should be able to track her."

"I'll tell Alfred," Esmeralda replied. "Emilia, she will not return as the same person she had been."

"I know," Emi replied dismally. "Right now, we just want her to come back." She swallowed hard, "Demon or not, just get her back."

"She could turn into a Demon?" Chiho whispered through her tears.

"I doubt it," Lucifer replied. "Kaminari was angry on a level I didn't know was possible, but she must have learned about Ente Isla's magic. She's not showing it or acting on it."

"What spell do they have to break?" Maou asked.

"She was summoned," Emi replied. "We might not be able to bring her back. Esmeralda and Alfred are going to take her to the Devil's Castle and summon a Gate there to bring her back. The celestial force there will be weakest so the church won't be strong enough to keep her there."

Suzuno turned a terrible shade of white, "She knows about the summoning ritual. She may not stay human for long even if she isn't acting out on her anger.

"What is the summoning ritual?" Alciel asked. "It sounds...permanent."

"Because it's supposed to be," Suzuno replied. "It requires human sacrifices to complete. Anyone would be angry if they heard the death of children had taken them to a place they didn't want to be."

"Yeah, that will do it," Maou commented. "I guess we'll have to wait. The church must have blocked off this world from opening the Gate. She wouldn't want us to kill the people in this city just to get enough energy to get her."

Lucifer remained quiet, his eyes moving to the world on the other side of the window.

He wasn't going to voice that she wanted to kill everyone in a Ente Isla, because it was such a short emotion. It amused him how much she knew about him. She was right when she believed all she had to do was ask him and he would destroy the church for her. But it was her deeper emotions, her sorrows and longing he would take care of. He was ready to hold her as long as she needed him. She had him under a spell of her own, though he knew she didn't know. What he believed love felt like was what he believed he was dealing with when he thought of her.

He knew the consequences, and that was really the only thing holding him back. If he loved her, he might lose the powers to protect her. He didn't want to lose that. But, at the moment, it didn't matter how much magic he had. The entire church had managed to lock the Gate. He couldn't get to her, but at least he had given her enough of his magic to protect her for any harm that could come.

When Chiho left for work, Maou stayed behind to discuss strategy to get to Ente Isla. "So, what happened to her?" He asked Suzuno.

She still didn't want to say in Lucifer's presence, but knew he could handle it better than Chiho. "She was called a devil's concubine. Any humans that had any dealings with a Demon and survived are considered to be concubines merely because they survived the encounter. They pulled the magic from her and stabbed her to a cross...then cleansed her." Suzuno's knuckles were white as she grasped her kimono. "She's nothing more than a harlot on the streets, marked by the church as someone who has dealt with the demons."

"Cleansed?" Alciel questioned.

"Having sex with a priest is considered a way of cleansing your soul from sin. Since she was considered a devil's concubine...it required more than one priest."

"I will kill every last priest in that abomination," Lucifer said through gritted teeth. "They will feel every cut, every burn, every bruise that she has ever had. And they will beg for death, but never receive it."

"I can't say I blame you," Maou replied. "I'm not going to stop you, either, but could you turn it down a notch? I think they're about to pass out." He looked at Emi and Suzuno who were looking a little pale.

Unable to really control himself in the apartment, he left. Wandering the city cleared his mind, and spending the energy on walking definitely helped calm him down. Before he knew it, he was completely lost in the middle of Tokyo. With no real direction to follow, he continued walking. He would end up home eventually. After a few more hours, he found himself in front of Kaminari's home. They had told her family she had been sent to a branch of MgRonalds on the other side of Tokyo and they had given her a temporary apartment to stay in so they wouldn't be seeing her for a while.

Now that he had his bearings, he headed back to his apartment. When he stepped inside, a realization immediately clicked in his mind. He jumped over the table in the middle of the room to get to his computer and immediately pulled up the article and pictures from Kaminari's past.

When he finally got to the picture of her mother, everything came together. There it was, hiding in in the most obvious place. The crucifix that the priests burned into those that were considered permanently unclean.

"Lucifer? What is it?" Alciel asked as he walked to the demon's side.

"The people that killed her family were from Ente Isla," he said as he used his cursor to circle the cross burned onto the woman's neck. "They took her to finish the job. They're going to kill her."

Alciel had never seen the Demon so distraught, and he had known him for centuries. The closest he had gotten was when Alciel forgot to bring home food.

"We'll get to her before then," Maou assured. "If Emi's friends can find her, she'll be coming back." Maou felt a rock in his stomach as he looked at the Demon general, "Your magic won't attract demons, will it?"

"If it does, its strong enough to keep them away. I buried the magic deeper this time so it can't be pulled out of her' no matter how hard those fools try." A bone chilling chuckle left a Lucifer's lips, "They'll have quite a surprise waiting for them this time."

"What did you do?" Alciel asked.

"She has my magic in Ente Isla. Limitless magic is at her fingertips. All she has to do is use it."

"And that won't turn her into a Demon?"

"I'm not a Demon," Lucifer reminded him. "My magic isn't true magic. She's more likely to turn into an angel."

"Two fallen angels, just what we need," Maou said sarcastically. "Let's just hope she's found somewhere safe to stay. The longer she's out of the church the better. But, if they find a Lucifer's magic, they'll be able to find her."

"It couldn't be that hard to ask people which way the intelligent harlot went," Lucifer commented.

"Intelligent?" Alciel and Maou questioned.

"She's only been missing two days in this world, which is almost a week in a Ente Isla. She's already mastered the language and how to read. More than likely, she mastered the language yesterday. She did it without magic. Besides, how many humans in a Ente Isla actually knew how to read?"

"That's true," Maou agreed. "Well, all we can do is hope she's okay. I guess we'll hear from Emi's friends sooner or later. Until then, I guess we can just keep trying to find a way to get our magic. We'll need it. The church is going to fight harder this time, but with a Emi on our side for once, we might have a chance if we cross over full power."

Lucifer focused on the image of the broken, dead woman in front of him, the mark of the church on her neck. When Kaminari returned, she would have the same mark. After researching the mark, he found it had no real significance, though it had been centuries ago when one of the churches of this world started branding their members, though theirs was on the wrist. The trend didn't last long, but it was still something that had been made note.

He clicked out of the internet page and stood up to get ready for work. He was closing again, but the horror movie was still bringing in enough customers to keep his magic sustainable. He needed more, which made him want to destroy the city once again, but Maou would kill him if that happened. There was nothing that could be done at the time.

"Sire, I believe Lucifer will be returning to a Ente aisle," Alciel said when the door closed.

"I know. I'm going with him. Someone has to make sure he doesn't kill everyone." Maou replied as he read a book.

"I'm serious."

"I am too," Maou said as he looked at his trusted general. "I don't know what he's feeling, but he knows what Kaminari is feeling. When he gets there, he's probably going to act on that. If she's as angry as I think she is, Lucifer might destroy Ente Isla."

"Let's hope she doesn't hold a grudge against the rest of the world. It wouldn't be very beneficial to return to a home where there were no people to rule." Alciel muttered, defeated by the situation.

"That's true, but I think she's only got a grudge against the church. They are the ones that killed children to bring her there." Maou replied. "If he asks, I'll help him level it. They don't deserve to rule over anyone."


	8. Chapter 8

Kaminari never found Gretchen. No one had come to the cabin since the old woman had vanished or since that creature looking for Lucifer had visited. Kaminari made the best out of the terrible situation. Gathering anything that she thought would hold any value and creating a bag out of her old clothes, she packed everything she could hold or need then started her plan. At night, she wandered to the graveyard and dug up a woman who had been recently buried, then filled the hole again and took the decaying corpse to the home, tying her wrist to a chair. The sun had barely lit the sky when the house started to burn. By then, Kaminari was already five miles away, not bothering to look back.

She didn't count the days as they passed. The countryside terrain would change to forest to countryside again. She still had no idea which direction she was going in, but knew she would eventually find the coast. When she finally found the coast, she could see something in the distance, shrouded in dark clouds.

"Come to see the Devil's Castle?" Kaminari nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of the man's voice. He was an older man, tanned and wrinkled with a fishing pole in his hand and a straw hat on his head. He had a loud laugh, one that reminded her a lot of Santa Claus people believed in back on Earth. "Well, they do offer boat rides to those who have a death wish. They say the devil has been sent to another universe, but I think he's just gathering his forces. I have no doubt in my mind he has killed the great Hero Emilia. Only reason I think that is because I've seen Lucifer with my own two eyes. They said he was dead!"

His face blanched when he saw the mark on her neck, "So, the church is sending you to die where you were kept prisoner. I've never really agreed with the way they do things, but it can't be helped. You'll have to swim, I'm afraid. We're not allowed to ferry the damned."

Kaminari didn't move as she stared at the distant castle. She could only assume demons and certain death waited for her there. She wasn't going to die, not now. Lucifer would be returning for her. She just needed to lay low for a while. The old fisherman left her there, heading on with his life, enjoying the sun.

She sat down on the grass before it faded to sand. The Devil's Castle. The church wouldn't go there. If that one Demon thought she was Lucifer, would others? Was there a chance of survival in the place of certain death? She yawned as she stretched then fell on her back and stared at the sun. She didn't need to decide yet.

Esmeralda and Alfred made it to the village just as the smoke started to fade from the ashen house. Other members of the church had arrived before them and were glad the harlot had died in the fire. Esmeralda and Alfred weren't convinced. Their eyes followed the main road as it headed toward the sea.

"Do you think she headed to the Castle?" Albert asked.

"She might have felt drawn to it," Esmeralda replied. "It wouldn't hurt to check."

Using their celestial force, the two floated to the sky, flying toward the Devil's Castle in hopes of finding the one girl that held the fate of Ente Isla in her hands. When they arrived to the shore, all they found were footprints that lead to the water and a ragged orange bag.

"Do you think she tried to kill herself?" Alfred questioned as he examined the harsh waters.

The tides would only get worse the closer she got to the island. That was if she didn't get eaten by the monsters on the way. The two followed the waters to the island where the Devil's Castle had been built. There was nothing in the roaring waves that would suggest she had made it.

As Esmeralda stared at the thorny thickets that lined the black slate shores, she pulled the phone she used to contact Emilia. "Did you find her?" Emilia asked.

"She tried to swim to Devil's Castle," Esmeralda told her. "I think she's dead."

There was a short argument on the other side of the phone before a new voice started talking to Esmeralda, "She's not dead. She's probably on the shore already. Just keep a look out."

Kaminari huffed as she climbed through thick thorn thickets, some of the spikes piercing into her skin and breaking off. This doom and gloom almost made her miss the church, but somehow, this island felt more homey. It was probably just the Demon magic in her, but she didn't care. The moment she was out of the thickets, she almost lost an eye to a spear pointed at her face.

"I am so tired of this crap!" Kaminari screamed, a purple energy erupting from her body, killing the creatures around her. She sighed as she started pulling thorns from her arms and legs. At some point in the water she had lost both of her shoes, leaving her feet bloody and disgusting as she continued to walk forward. She hoped she would find a path through the tough grass that cut her skin and sharp rocks that made her stumble. When she discovered she could use Lucifer's magic to protect herself, she used it only when need be. If she could run or hide from a creature, she chose to do that.

The terrible grass started to turn into trees with long vines that were either covered in acid or were actually snakes. The rocks were also becoming slicker, making it harder for her to walk. She was tired and thirsty. She knew she couldn't stop, though. There were wolves and other unpleasant things around that kept her from pausing at all.

As the trees began to clear, a giant wall of stone started to show in the darkness. She almost cried as she ran to the castle, entering through the large door on the side. Her joy was immediately doused when a pack of wolves jumped on her. A large burst of magic killed the dogs, and she ventured on, closing the door behind her.

They hadn't lied when they said it was a castle. The walls seemed to reach the sky, decorated in gold and silver, but darkness as well. There were beautiful mosaic windows that caught what little moonlight that could be seen. And yet, it was still destroyed. Despite its ruin, it was beautiful. Now that she felt safe, she began to venture around for somewhere to rest. There were many rooms with beds, but none of them seemed right. Two felt familiar, but she found one that almost welcomed her. The room was typical, a dresser for clothing and a bed. After a shake of the sheets, getting the dust off, she curled under the soft fabric. Though the fabric smelled of burning grass and ash, she felt comfortable. This was what Lucifer was supposed to smell like.

Voices echoed in the distant corridors waking Kaminari from her sleep. Too tired to move, she just lay still, praying whoever had entered the castle would just leave her be. But, she didn't belong in this world. As she closed her eyes, she could hear the voices getting closer. It didn't bother her, though. She felt safe, and that was all that really mattered to her. When she was better, she would find a way to harness Lucifer's magic to create a Gate. Until then, she would wait and recover. This world had not been kind to her and she was eager to return the favor.

Esmeralda stepped quietly in the castle, though her footsteps still echoed in the hollowed halls. Alfred was with her, his boots hitting the floor heavily. No one even dared to venture to the island anymore. The demons had long since taken over the area, but none would even enter the Devil's Castle in fear of the king returning.

"Where could she have gone?" Esmeralda wondered as she looked around.

The castle was more or less a labyrinth of halls that sometimes met, sometimes came to a dead end.

"Maybe Lucifer's room?" Albert suggested. "She would probably be the most comfortable there."

They searched room after room, looking for Lucifer's room hoping to find Kaminari somewhere. When Alfred pushed on one door, it didn't budge.

"Is it locked?" Esmeralda asked as she pushed on the door as well.

Albert knocked loudly, "Kaminari? Are you in there?"

After a few moments, the door opened revealing the small girl, beaten and bloodied from her adventure to the castle. Her thin face was covered in small scratches and her chapped lips were busted and black from blood. Her pale eyes were bloodshot making her look like a haunted corpse of some kind. Blood covered her body, and the once gray dress was tattered and torn, holes in many places where the fabric was barely keeping together. Thorns poked out of wounds she probably didn't realize she had as well as sticks and leaves in her dirt colored hair. Putrid smelling yellow gunk stuck to her clothing, and her skin giving her an annoying burn and rash.

"I'm Alfred," the man introduced with a smile. "This is Esmeralda. We're here to take you home."

The girl narrowed her eyes into a very crazed glare. "I am home."

"Lucifer sent us," Esmeralda said quickly to calm the girl's growing anger. "He would have come, but the church is keeping the Gate from opening on that side."

Tears filled her pale eyes and slowly dropped down her cheeks as she looked at the two. "Please take me home. I'm so tired."

Esmeralda opened the dresser and pulled out a jacket. She gently draped it over her shoulders then took her to the throne room and outstretched her hand. Slowly a black hole began to open in front of them and Alfred picked up Kaminari the jumped into the hole, Esmeralda following them.

Emi answered her phone, "Did you find her?"

"I don't know if she's going to make it," Esmeralda replied dismally.

"Take her to the hospital and we'll meet you there."

Rika looked up from her lunch, "Is everything okay?"

"My cousin is getting out in the hospital," she lied quickly. "I'll see you tomorrow!"

Emi ran out of the building, calling Chiho as she ran. By the time Emi made it to the hospital, everyone else was already there. Kaminari's parents, Chiho, Maou, Alciel, and Suzuno were there. "Where's Urushihara?"

"We don't know," Maou replied. "He's not answering his phone and he's not at work."

As the hours passed, there was still no word from Lucifer. Even when Kaminari was put into an actual hospital room, he was still nowhere to be found.

"Some boyfriend," Maou heard Mrs. Sasaki mutter. "She could be dying, and he's just letting it go to voicemail."

"Sometimes, men can't handle seeing someone they love in such a sad state," Mr. Sasaki explained. "She looks like she's been run over by a truck then dragged through glass."

"That's a very vivid description," Lucifer said as he walked in the room. In his arms was his laptop, his game system, and some snacks.

"You went home?" Maou asked as the Demon plugged in his laptop and sat on the floor.

"Well, yeah," Lucifer replied. "It's not like the hospital has a lot of stuff to do. I talked to Jaden's father and he's given me a week off so I can stay here with Kami. The cafeteria isn't open all the time and sometimes vending machines are outdated so I brought some of my own food. I plan on staying here until my time off ends or she gets out. Whatever comes first."

Maou smiled at his friend, almost enjoying the embarrassment coming from Mrs. Sasaki. Knowing Lucifer, he was going to stay true to what he said.

"Are you going to come home to change clothes?" Maou asked.

"I asked Ashiya to bring me clothes since I couldn't carry them. I also gave him money to buy me a backpack so we won't have this problem again."

When it started getting late, the Sasakis left leaving Maou with Lucifer. Once Lucifer got comfortable in the chair, he sighed. "I don't know what's keeping her here. She would be better off dead, but-is that my jacket?" Lucifer stood up, grabbing the folded fabric from the shelf and opening it. He smiled as he reached into the pocket and pulled out a small leather band lined with gold markings. "There it is."

"What is it?" Maou asked as he took the bracelet from him. "It's a little early to propose, don't you think?"

Lucifer gave him a dead panned look while taking the bracelet back, "All the archangels had them. They help with the strength of celestial power. Of course, mine altered some when I decided to leave Heaven." He gently clasped the bracelet together, the material merging into itself where it couldn't be taken off again. "That should help keep the nightmares away. Unfortunately, it will probably put her in a lot of pain if anything holy is inside her."

The two watched her sleep for a few minutes before smiling. "She's not pregnant, so that's a plus." Maou stated as he stretched. "I'm going home. Guess I'll come by tomorrow."

Lucifer gave a careless wave as he went back to playing a game on his computer. Perhaps he should become a doctor. It was probably better than the movie job he had and the only thing that could be smelled besides the cleaning fluids was the fear.

When he finally decided to get some sleep, he watched a nurse come in and wake Kaminari up so she could take some blood and get her vitals. Kaminari was barely conscious for any of it, not even noticing Lucifer as she fell asleep again.

He moved his chair to her side and gently grabbed the hand that he placed the bracelet on. The band started to glow purple, reacting to his touch which brought a smile to his face. He watched as her once distressed face soothed into a peaceful sleep.

He woke up to someone poking him in the forehead, "Lucifer?"

He groaned as he sat up, immediately regretting sleeping in the chair like that. Kaminari's pale eyes were glittering with tears as she looked at him. He gently touched her face, moving some of her hair from her face. Gently taking her hand, he placed a light kiss on her palm, "If you want me to destroy the church, I will."

She shook her head as tears started to stream down her pale cheeks. She blushed slightly, but he knew what she wanted. He couldn't hold her like he wanted, but he could touch her, and that was enough for the moment.

Her eyes started to gloss over with tears of the memories she had of her time in Ente Isla. As she went through all the details with him, there were moments when she could only whisper and others she could barely say at all. She placed her hand on the mark that was on her shoulder.

"What's a devil's concubine?" She asked him.

"Our subordinates would destroy villages and sometimes take villagers as trophies. The few that they let live would kill themselves, but a few went to the church for cleansing. The church had to find a way to cleanse them and that seemed to be the only acceptable way. There was one group that claimed to be raped by Satan, but that wasn't true. They just wanted to have sex with the priests. That was Ashiya's territory. He left no one alive."

"I don't blame him," she replied evenly. "The church will suffer the same fate."


	9. Chapter 9

While in the hospital, Lucifer told Kaminari what he had found when he had seen the pictures.

"Do you think I could be from Ente Isla?" She asked him.

He shrugged as he closed his laptop, "It's something to think about, though. Your family might have been trying to escape the war."

"They would have brought people with them, right?" She asked. She placed her hand on the mark, "Do you think...do you think someone loved my mom enough to save her?"

Lucifer frowned as she scratched at her shoulder. She was healing quickly, too quickly for a human. He had seen a few humans get turned into angels, and that was one of the tell tale signs. He hoped she would be able to keep her free will, since she was wearing his bracelets. It would give her the power and authority to do as she pleased.

At the same time, Chiho would try to gain the same transformation so she could be with Maou. That simple minded human wouldn't be able to truly understand that as an angel, she wouldn't be able to stay with Maou due to the face she would be just an angel, not the possible arch angel like her sister.

Then again, Kaminari could be turning into a demon. Maou had wings. A light smile fell on Lucifer's lips as he looked at the girl who was silently reading a book. Human, angel, or demon...he could see himself loving her.

She scratched at her shoulder again, "I think they left a thorn there."

He gently took her hand, keeping it between his so she couldn't scratch anymore. "It might be more complicated than that."

"Complicated?" She asked with a frown. "How complicated?"

"You might be turning into an angel or demon," he said carefully.

"Oh," she nodded, thinning her lips as she stared ahead. "Yeah, I guess that does make things a little more complicated." She sighed as she picked up the book once again. "I suppose it can't be helped. Chiho is going to lose her mind, though."

She looked at Lucifer's hand, gently grabbing it and watching the bracelets light up. It amused her like a child playing with a light switch for the first time. "If you wear it, does it stay purple?"

"Only a couple of seconds," he replied.

She kept her hand still on his and watched the purple glow slowly fade away. It brought a smile to her lips. His magic. His way of protecting her.

"Hey, guys," Maou greeted as he walked in. "Esmeralda found a book she thought you would be interested in."

Kaminari took the giant book from him then tossed it away. She stared at her slightly blue hands. It had burned her, but from a drop of temperature. Frostbite.

Lucifer picked up the book, flipping through the pages to see what was in the book. "It's cursed."

"That's what Esmeralda said," Maou said as he leaned against the wall. "So, any new developments?"

"He said I might be growing wings," Kaminari told him as she adjusted herself in the bed where Lucifer could prop the book up against a pillow.

She sat quietly as she read the book. "Maou, what is this?"

"She didn't tell me," Maou replied.

Lucifer took the book from its position, looking at the page she had been reading. "It's the genealogy of the priests," Lucifer explained as he looked at Maou. "The genealogies of mixed blood."

"Like demons?" Maou asked as he took the book.

"Angels, demons, humans, people from other realms," Lucifer replied. His violet gaze became almost sympathetic as he gently took Kaminari's hand. "You're the daughter of a priest and harlot, one of the devil's concubines."

"Only, she lied," Maou said as he flipped the pages. "Her mother is from the Eastern Continent."

"Alciel was supposed to kill them all," Lucifer replied.

"Well, they managed to get out, or she did. The priest is mentioned over and over," Maou said as he turned the pages. "I guess your father is from this world."

Kaminari frowned as Lucifer placed the book in front of her, letting her look over the cold pages. Despite the freezing burns, she continued to flip the pages, looking over the strange birth and death certificates, hoping somehow it would explain what happened to her.

"Can Esmeralda bring more books?" Kaminari asked. She looked back at the book in front of her. She was talking in Ente Islan.

"We said the book was cursed," Maou shrugged. "It's weird that it's burning you, and you're only speaking Ente Islan. At least you can understand us, right?"

"Yeah," Kaminari replied with a smile. "How long will it last?"

"Who knows," Maou replied with a shrug.

Her attention went back to the book. None of the names were familiar, but the language seemed like the only one she had ever known. But, she was born in Japan, right?

Now that she thought about it, she wasn't so sure. She had a birth certificate, but if she remembered correctly, there had been some sort of alteration to it. She flipped through the pages searching for her mother's name.

What was her mother's name?

Joji?

That seemed familiar, but wrong all the same. What was her name?

Her eyes found an interesting name. Jocelyn Enfield.

"This is my mother," she told Lucifer as she pointed at the name.

"Jocelyn Enfield?" Maou questioned. "She must have come through the Gate."

"She has a son," Lucifer commented as he followed the tree. He sighed, "Lillian Westbrook."

"The priest?" Maou asked as he took the book. "No wonder he wanted to kill you off. Going to another dimension is a bit intense, though."

"Emilia did it," Lucifer commented with a dull look. "Guess we'll just have to keep an eye on her. He managed to possess her father. If I hadn't been there, he would have attempted to kill her."

"When?" Kaminari asked.

"At the cemetery," he replied, gently taking her hand.

Her eyes moved to his, "Will I be okay?"

He smiled, "I'll take care of you."

It wasn't the answer she wanted, but it was enough to relax her for the moment. She scratched at her shoulder again, "Are you sure there's not a thorn in there?"

Lucifer gently pushed her forward and moved her shirt to see what she was scratching. "It's not a thorn."

He frowned at the large bump that was squirming under her skin, slowly devouring the magic in her body that he had placed there. "Maou, look."

When Maou looked, he frowned, "Gross. I haven't seen one of those in a long time. Think you can get it out?"

"This is going to hurt," Lucifer warned.

Kaminari barely nodded before Lucifer shoved his hand into her back, Maou covering the girl's mouth to muffle the scream. She held onto Maou's arm as tears streamed down her cheeks. She could feel something moving under her skin, crawling and tightening around her spine. Her skin began to glow purple as the demon slowly forced his magic into her body.

Maou did his best to keep Kaminari calm, though her body had practically shut down from the pain. He was worried about her and more worried about Lucifer. Placing the leech inside her was also a way of keeping tabs of where Lucifer was. Where Lucifer was, Maou would be. They also wanted to kill Kaminari. The leech was a guaranteed slow death for the girl.

By the time Lucifer had pulled the disgusting creature out, Kaminari had blacked out from the pain. He sighed as he gently placed his clean hand on her sweat covered cheek. "I'm sorry."

Maou smiled as he crossed his arms over his chest, "Look at you. You're becoming less of a troublemaker every day."

Lucifer glared at him as he headed to the bathroom to wash the blood off. "You should call the nurses. They won't be too happy about all the blood."

Kaminari woke up to the familiar smell of McRonalds. The itching in her shoulder had been replaced with a hollow pain. Something had been pulled out of her.

Someone spoke to her making her look at Chiho who was grinning with the McRonalds in her hands. Her pale eyes moved to Lucifer who had fallen asleep in his chair, but Ashiya was there.

"Alciel, I can't understand her," she told the demon general who blinked at the familiar words of his home.

"Yes, King Satan said something like this was happening, but I didn't think you would forget your native language. Very well. I will translate for you until Lucifer wakes up." He had a proud smile on his face, "He used a lot of magic pulling a spirit leech from your back. He should wake up soon."

She gave a grateful smile to the demon before looking down at Lucifer again. She opened her mouth to speak, but a handful of fries was shoved into her mouth, Chiho glaring at her and clearly going off on her, though Kaminari didn't have a clue what she was saying.

"She's mad you're not speaking to her," Ashiya summarized.

"Does she know I can't understand her?" Kaminari asked while looking at Chiho.

"Yes, but she can understand you," Ashiya told her.

"Then there's no need for you to get all pissy at me if I don't know who I can talk to!" Kaminari spat at Chiho. "It's not my fault the book cursed me."

Chiho went on a long rant, Ashiya not translating any of it. When she finally stopped screeching, Ashiya translated. "She said you should have touched the cursed book. Next time just let Lucifer do it."

"Because you would just be thrilled if it happened to Satan," Kaminari huffed. "Don't you work or something?"

"She just got off," Ashiya told her. "Kaminari, why did you call Maou Satan?"

Kaminari frowned, "I don't know a Maou."

Ashiya placed his hand to his chin, his thoughts starting to take over. "What's my name?"

"Alciel," Kaminari plied slowly.

"What is my human name?" He questioned again.

"You don't have a human name," she replied.

He started talking to Chiho, not bothering to translate what he was saying. Whatever it was really upset Chiho as she started to tear up.

"The curse on the book is slowly erasing your life he in Japan and replacing it with Ente Isla. There's a chance it's temporary, but it's also possible that you will forget Chiho, and you may even start hating King Satan, Lucifer, and me. You have a fair amount of magic in you, so there's a chance it will go away soon, but I will ask Suzuno to make sure."

She hummed for a moment then nodded. "Okay."

She ate the fries while Chiho told her about everything that had happened since she went to Ente Isla. When Ashiya translated it, Kaminari could tell something got lost in translation because Chiho was bordering tears while what Ashiya told her seemed less than interesting.

In return, Kaminari told her about the beauty of Ente Isla. She left out the details of what happened to her at the church, but described the city survived in for a few days as well as the village she went to where Gretchen took care of her. She told her about Maou's castle, some of which she could tell offended Ashiya.

"You should not have been in the castle," Ashiya told her.

"Well, I wasn't going to stay with the church," Kaminari argued. "It's not like I went through your underwear drawer. I stayed in Lucifer's room."

When her parents came in, they tried talking to Kaminari as well, but Ashiya told them what had happened. As a nurse walked in to get some blood, someone squeezed her hand.

The troubles of the world disappeared as she looked into glowing purple eyes. Lucifer gave her a small smile, "How are you feeling?"

"Better now that your hand isn't in my back."

"Trust me, pulling that thing out is better than growing wings." He gently pushed some of her hair from her face, "You look a lot better."

She smiled some. From what she understood, he had changed a lot now that he was away from Ente Isla. Maou and Ashiya had calmed down their ways of violence as well. Two demons and a fallen angel, creatures powerful enough to take over the human race lived calm lives, one a part timer at a fast food restaurant, one a house wife, one at the theatre.

"Thank you," Kaminari said quietly.

His eyes moved away from her, replying to something Ashiya had said. The air in the room changed when the two demons started talking. Chiho looked upset as well as her parents.

Everyone's attention moved to the doctor that walked in who told the group something. His features and tone were dismal at best, occasionally glancing at Kaminari.

When Chiho started crying, Kaminari grabbed Lucifer's hand. He smiled calmly down at her, relaxing her a bit, but not letting go of her hand. Once the doctor left, Lucifer looked down at her, placing his hand on her cheek, "He said you're dying."

His warm smile didn't stop her panic. He wiped the tears from her eyes, "Kami, it's just a side effect of the worm I pulled out. The toxins are still in your blood, but the magic is fighting it off. It should be out of your system by tomorrow."

Kaminari felt her heart sink with the doctor touched her shoulder, his thumb moving over the brand. On reflex, she slapped his hand away, her heart monitor racing as she stared up at him. "I don't trust you."

He looked at Lucifer who relayed the message. The doctor chuckled, replying to Lucifer before walking out.

"Do you really think he's from Ente Isla?" Lucifer asked her.

"I don't like how he touched me," she replied as she placed her hand on the brand. "He touched the mark."

Kaminari could feel the bizarre darkness coming from Lucifer. He was controlling his anger best he knew how, his eyes glowing as they stared into Kaminari's worried gaze. He took a calming breath before the glow disappeared. "Don't worry. I'm not leaving you."


	10. Chapter 10

Kaminari was released from the hospital just in time for the fall semester to start. Before she could return, she had to dye her hair a natural color. Apparently silver was not considered natural. After a great deal of debate on her part, she decided to go platinum blonde white. It was a natural color, after all.

As she walked with Chiho, she wondered who would talk to her. She hadn't seen any of her friends from the last time she had gone to school. When she let them know of her return, no one replied, so she had basically scratched them off her people to depend on list, even debating over whether to delete their numbers from her phone. She ended up keeping them just in case she got stuck with them on a project or some misfortune that would force her to socialize.

"Look who's back," someone said.

Kaminari smirked as she turned to an old friend of hers, Yuzu. The cherry red haired girl with pink eyes had a mischievous smirk on her lips as she sized up Kaminari.

"I heard you were back," she stated. "I also heard you had quite the time at the cemetery with the cute boy from the movie theatre. Tell me, is he single?"

Kaminari simply shrugged with an innocent smile, "Don't know. I know he has standards. He likes a girl that can keep her legs shut."

Yuzu laughed, "Then why does he keep you around?"

"The same reason Jaden still hired him. Everyone knows the rumors from Europe aren't true," Kaminari replied. "I know it's hard for you to remember names and faces, but do you really think you would hire someone your ex recommended, or is there a guy in this city that hasn't seen the new carpet in your room?"

No one spoke at the final insult. For the time being, Kaminari had won. Yuzu could remember just a year ago a time when Kaminari wouldn't keep a conversation like that going. She had changed a lot. She was more than confident, but not cocky. Something had changed her, and Yuzu wanted to know what.

Kaminari almost fell asleep in all of her classes. Whispers became white noise as she walked down the halls.

When school was finally over, she started to leave but stopped when her blood ran cold. She looked around trying to find the source of the feeling and began panicking when the bracelets started to glow. She needed Lucifer immediately.

She ran back into the school, running down the halls until she found an empty classroom and got into its metal supplies closet. Her hands shook as she struggled with her phone and called the fallen angel.

"Hey, Kami," he greeted.

"Someone's here," she whispered, her body trembling as she started to feel as though she was in a horror game. She could sense the evil nearby, or the dark intentions directed toward her.

"Where are you?"

"I'm at school," she replied, her voice strained from threatening tears. "Please, Lucifer."

She immediately hung up when somewhere in her mind she heard footsteps. The was some sort of alternate reality, an invisible world in her world, and there was someone that was trying to become visible in her world. It was coming for her.

She scratched at the bracelets trying to take them off in case the purple was glowing bright enough to be seen from outside. As she slowly slid down, the footsteps were getting closer. If she could sense them, they could sense her.

Her fear intensified when she heard actual footsteps running through the school. The footsteps in her mind began running as well.

They were getting closer. They both ran into the room and everything went silent. The footsteps of her reality moved toward her while the ones in her mind walked away.

The ones walking away stopped as did the ones in front of her.

Silence.

Kaminari had stopped breathing as she waited for the next move.

"Kami?" Someone called.

Footsteps suddenly stopped just outside the room, "Urushihara? Why are you here?"

It was Chiho. Why was Chiho here?

"Kami and I have a date tonight," Lucifer covered. "She said she would wait for me at school, and I haven't found her yet."

Her fear almost disappeared, but she heard the footsteps in her mind get closer again. She covered her mouth with her hands, hoping it would muffle any sort of cry or whimper she could feel bubbling up.

Lucifer chuckled, "I don't know who you think you are, but you have no authority here. Go back to where you came from."

His orders had been said in Ente Islan. The heavy feeling on her mind immediately vanished. As soon as the door scratched open, she launched into Lucifer's arms, shivering as he held her tight, gently rubbing her back to soothe her.

"I've got you," he reassured before kissing her temple. "I'm here."

Chiho stood shocked at her sister's fragility. Her strong attitude had been fading away, but she never thought Kaminari would be genuinely afraid of something. Since her return from Ente Isla, she really hadn't been the same. It was almost like a part of her had been left behind or lost.

"What was here?" Kaminari asked Lucifer, her fingers still tight on his shirt.

"Just an angel," he replied as he gently pushed her back. He tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, "Now. Let's go on that date, yeah?"

Kaminari looked from his violet eyes to his offered hand. Slowly she took it, getting caught off guard when he gently interlaced their fingers. Her body stiffened at the intimate gesture. She had read in her time in Ente Isla angels could lose their powers, become human or mortal. Falling in love with a human was almost the only way unless the church somehow managed to take it from them. Though she would have been happy with Lucifer, she wasn't willing to take that from him.

Something wouldn't let her let go. This small chance of hope and selfishness.

Kaminari was uncomfortable, that much was obvious to Lucifer. She seemed to be fighting this inner demon, but he didn't know what it was. Her grip on his hand was strange, like she wanted to let go but couldn't.

"What did you learn in Ente Isla?" Lucifer asked her.

"Trust no one," she replied with a sad smile. Her eyes moved to the ground, "I've never felt so alone before." Her grip tightened a bit, "I can still feel them. I can still smell them. Sometimes, the dreams are so real, I'm not really sure I'm back or not."

He frowned, "Kami, why haven't you said anything? We could have been helping."

She shook her head, "There isn't a strong enough magic to get rid of this. I don't want him to come back. I don't want to go back."

"Emi's friends are doing what they can to help us get Lillian. It will take time, though. The church isn't known to give up its secrets."

She nodded, turning her attention to her concerned sister, "Is something wrong?"

Chiho shook her head as she raised her hands, "No, nothing at all!" She smiled, "Have fun on your date."

Date. Right.

Kaminari looked down at her hand still holding onto Lucifer. Her eyes moved back to the fallen angel who had a fond smile on his face, "Ready to go?"

His easiness soothed her causing a smile to form on her lips. "Okay."

The three left the school building, parting ways at the exit. Chiho had work while Kaminari was off for the day.

"You've got quite the fan base," Kaminari told her purple haired friend. "A former friend of mine asked if you were single."

He looked at her, curious as to what her answer had been. It was something that was going to come up at some point, but he still didn't have an answer. "What did you tell her?"

She shrugged, "I don't know."

He blinked at the response, "You told her that you don't know if I'm single or not?"

Kaminari lifted their still intertwined hands, "You tell me." She chewed on her lip, looking at the ground at her sudden attitude, "I'm sorry. I just don't want to regret anything, you know?"

"You...regret this?" He asked with a frown.

She was suddenly bursting with negative emotions, doubt, guilt, sadness. If he hadn't felt that, he definitely would have walked away and never looked back. "I'm not going to regret you, Lucifer," she finally said. "I've never been happier. Things have changed a lot since we first met. You're an angel, I'm just a human. You have the rest of eternity to find someone you can spend that time with, if not others as well. You shouldn't settle for one human and lose who you are."

He let her words sink in as he ran his fingers over the bracelets on her wrists. With time, she would turn. He didn't know what it would be, but she was changing. Giving her the bracelets had saved her life and would continue to save her life. But, consequences came with them. That would depend on her. She would be the deciding factor of her fate. Would she become an angel with no free will or a demon with no control? Would she end up in Heaven before coming back or never see him again?

Then again, she wore the bracelets of an archangel. Perhaps that could get her free will as an angel.

"We can worry about that later," Lucifer finally said. "Let's have some fun."

Kaminari was more than happy to put the topic to rest and just enjoy the rest of the day with Lucifer. As the evening came to an end, she headed to the apartment with him so she could start Maou back on his studies. When it neared midnight, Lucifer walked her home.

Kaminari smiled at her dear friend as they stopped in front of the apartment complex she lived in. "I had fun. We should do it again some time."

He smiled a bit, "We'll see."

She hugged him, smiling against his neck. "You're not so bad for a fallen angel."

He laughed a bit as he pulled her closer to him, holding her tight. "I'll see you tomorrow."

He placed a kiss on her cheek, his magic swirling through her body once more. She grinned as she placed her finger on the spot, "I'm starting to think you're using me as a savings account, just in case you lose your magic, you'll have a place to get more."

He shrugged, "Maybe." He sighed as he ran his fingers through her white hair, "This doesn't match your personality."

"They said natural hair color," she replied. "Silver is natural, but rules are rules."

She turned a bit, getting ready to head inside. Her pale eyes left his as her eyebrows furrowed together, moving to somewhere behind him. "What do you want?"

Kaminari had noticed Yuzu had been following them most of the afternoon, but since they had visited so many shops and just walked around town, she didn't think anything of it. The red head lived on the other side of town, but there she stood waiting for something.

"How rude, Kami. Why don't you introduce me to your friend?" Yuzu smiled, her eyes focused on Lucifer as if he was some sort of trophy.

"I'm going home," Lucifer announced as he looked at Kaminari. "Goodnight, Kami."

The white haired girl gave a small smile, "Goodnight."

Kaminari turned to the apartment complex, yawning as she took a few steps. She half expected Yuzu to attack her, but nothing came. Keeping a laugh to herself, she made her way to the elevator only to find it broken. She groaned as she headed to the stairs regretting to ask Lucifer to take her to her room.

Chiho giggled, "Too bad Urushihara has eyes for only you."

Kaminari had told her the situation from the night before. Yuzu hadn't interrupted anything, but it was still annoying the girl had gone so far out of her way just to bother them. When they arrived at school, students would glance and whisper as the two walked by.

When Chiho and Kaminari stepped into the school, they were immediately greeted with flyers hanging everywhere. Someone had printed out some strange article about an incestuous relationship between Chiho and Kaminari had started when she returned and Kaminari was now pregnant with artificial insemination with their father's sperm.

While Chiho's burned bright red, Kaminari couldn't care less about the article. She was actually impressed. "You know, Chi, this is actually pretty clever." Chiho stared at the paper as it disappeared into purple flame. "But, I think I want to start another rumor. How about we do something with a little more truth to it."

With a snap of her fingers, all the flyers caught with the purple flame disappearing into ash within students' hands. A wicked smile came to the girl's lips as she looked at her sister, "There. That should help Maou and the others to get some magic."

Chiho gave a deadpanned look to her sister as chaos erupted in the halls, "I'm sure there was a better way to do that."

"Oh, yeah, no doubt," Kaminari agreed. "This was more fun."

The rest of the day went on in absolute panic. Teachers and students alike were barely able to focus, believing the purple fire could come back at any moment. As amusing as it was, it was also annoying. She didn't have time to be bothered with people's ridiculous fears. She just wanted to get through school and go home. She was tired from not getting enough sleep.

The moment school ended, Kaminari left. Chiho had archery, and Kaminari wasn't going to sit around and wait for that. As she left the school, she found Yuzu again, her friends standing behind her. "Is it a boy or girl?"

Kaminari stared at her having no idea what Yuzu was talking about. The clear vacant look on her face angered Yuzu, "How do you forget something like that?!"

"Something like what?" Kaminari questioned with a frown. "Is there a group project I didn't hear about?"

Yuzu shoved a flyer that had decorated the school that morning into her hands, "Why don't you give me a little insight?"

Kaminari read over the story again before looking at Yuzu, smiling a bit, "How about I tell you a different story that will make everyone's day."

She shoved the flyer back into Yuzu's hands. "Tell everyone I'm good friends with Satan. That should keep them interested."

Yuzu looked ready to argue but went silent as the flyer burst into purple flame, the ashes disappearing in the wind.

"By the way, I'm adopted." Kaminari started humming as she left the girl behind, too afraid to move or speak.


End file.
